CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australia said on Friday it has struck a deal to buy 20 million additional doses of the Pfizer vaccine as it is quickly moving away from its previous plan to rely primarily on the AstraZeneca vaccine.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the deal just hours after saying Australia would stop using the AstraZeneca vaccine for people under 50.
He said the deal means Australia will receive a total of 40 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine by the end of the year, enough to inoculate 20 million people in the country of 26 million.
The pivot in Australia came after the European Medicines Agency said this week it found a ‘possible link’ between the AstraZeneca vaccine and rare blood clots, although regulators in the UK and the European Union stressed the benefits of receiving the vaccine outweigh the benefits of the vaccine. risks for most people.
Following the European agency’s statement, Australian drug regulators held a series of urgent meetings Thursday, recommending the Pfizer vaccine become the vaccine of choice for people under 50.
Morrison said there was no ban on the AstraZeneca vaccine and the risk of side effects was small. He said the change was made out of an abundance of prudence.
The spindle represents a major shift in Australia’s overall approach and is likely to delay plans to get everyone vaccinated in October.
An important part of Australia’s strategy was the ability to make its own vaccines at home and not rely on shipments from abroad. It planned to produce about 50 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, enough for 25 million people. Australia had made no plans to make any other vaccines at home.
Even before the change, the government was criticized for a rollout program lagging behind that in most other developed countries. To date, Australia has administered just over 1 million doses of vaccine.
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese said the rollout was a debacle and that Australians needed certainty about when they would be vaccinated.
‘This government has failed. This government could not leave a choko vine behind a fence, ”Albanian told reporters, referring to a plant that produces pear-shaped fruit and grows easily in the Australian climate.
Health Minister Greg Hunt said there would be some adjustments, but everyone would be kept safe and vaccinated.
Australia has managed to eradicate the spread of the virus from the community, allowing life to continue as it did before the pandemic.
AstraZeneca noted that Australia’s decision to restrict use of the vaccine was based on the fact that it was not communicated by the community.
“Overall, regulatory authorities have reaffirmed that the vaccine provides a high level of protection against all forms of COVID-19 and that these benefits still far outweigh the risks,” the company said in a statement.