BERLIN (AP) – Officials in several European countries on Friday opposed decisions by others to interrupt the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine after sporadic reports of blood clots, despite a lack of evidence that the shot was responsible.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn said that while the country takes reports of potential adverse effects from vaccines “very, very seriously,” both the European Medicines Agency and the German vaccine regulator have said they have no evidence of an increase in vaccines. dangerous blood clots in connection with the shots.
“I regret that, based on the knowledge, as of Friday morning, some countries in the European Union have suspended vaccinations with AstraZeneca,” Spahn told reporters in Berlin.
Denmark was the first to stop temporarily use of the AstraZeneca vaccine Thursday after reports of blood clots in some people. The Nordic nation’s health authority said the decision was “based on a precautionary principle” and that a person who developed a blood clot after vaccination had died.
Norway, Iceland and Bulgaria followed suit and suspended the use of the Anglo-Swedish company’s vaccine, which was developed in collaboration with the University of Oxford.
“Until all doubts are cleared and experts guarantee that it poses no risk to humans, we will stop immunization with that vaccine,” Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said at a cabinet meeting. He said the suspension will last until the European Medicines Agency issues a written statement that it is safe.
The regulator has said it will investigate the reports – but that vaccinations should continue in the meantime.
Thailand and Congo have also delayed the use of the vaccine pending an investigation, while Italy and Romania have stopped using injections from a particular batch. Austria has also discontinued the use of single but different batch doses.
That decision followed the death from blood clots of a 49-year-old 10 days after she was vaccinated, and the hospitalization of a 35-year-old woman. Experts concluded that none of the complications were related to the vaccine, and the Austrian Chancellor said on Friday that he himself would be willing to get the injection “to show that I have confidence in this vaccine.”
“Experts here have a clear opinion and this vaccine is used in many countries around the world, and it is already used by tens of millions,” said Sebastian Kurz.
In fact, almost every country that issued a suspension acknowledged that it had no evidence that the vaccine had caused the blood clots. Health experts have pointed out that the people most likely to receive COVID-19 vaccinations today are also more likely to have other health problems, putting them at higher risk for blood clots.
France, Poland and Nigeria, meanwhile, said they would continue to use the AstraZeneca shot, even if national regulators investigate.
“At this stage, the benefit of vaccination is considered to outweigh the risk,” said French Health Minister Olivier Veran.
The suspensions were the latest issue for AstraZeneca, which had a public row with the European Union earlier this year over delivery delays and also raised concerns about its effectiveness in older adults. Although EU regulators have approved it for use in all adults, some countries have put in place age restrictions – although many are now lifting themThe problem is also because many EU countries have struggled to step up quickly vaccinations.
Despite the bumpy rollout, the vaccine is expected to be critical to the global vaccination program because it is cheaper and easier to store than many others – and because the global initiative to get vaccines to poorer countries, known as COVAX, is in high degree dependent on the vaccine.
Italy’s precautionary ban came after what it said were “serious adverse events”. It did not go further, but Italian media reported that at least two suspected deaths of soldiers and law enforcement officials were being investigated.
The union representing members of the Italian Air Force confirmed that one of its members had died and urged further clarification from the government.
The Italian ban affects many of the 500,000 AstraZeneca doses delivered across the country.
The European Medicines Agency, which authorized use in the 27 EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway in January, said that “the benefits of the vaccine still outweigh the risks and that the vaccine can be administered,” while a further evaluation of cases of blood clots continues.
“There is currently no evidence that vaccination has caused these conditions,” the regulator said Thursday. It said the number of people with blood clots in vaccinated people was no higher than those who had not been vaccinated.
The World Health Organization said the same, but added that it would review the reports, although it did not expect any changes to the recommendations based on current evidence.
The UK drug regulator also said it had not received reports of blood clots in humans caused by the AstraZeneca vaccine. More than 11 million doses of AstraZeneca have been administered in the UK
“The reports of blood clots received so far do not exceed the number that would have occurred naturally in the vaccinated population,” the agency said.
The EU drug regulator separately said that the product information for the AstraZeneca vaccine should be updated to note that cases of serious allergic reactions have been reported.
The proposed update is based on a review of 41 reported cases of anaphylaxis or serious allergic reactions identified in 5 million people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine. In a statement on Friday, the Amsterdam-based agency said it concluded that “an association with the vaccine was likely in at least some of these cases.”
Such allergic reactions are a known rare side effect of many vaccines and have been reported for other COVID-19 injections, including those made by Pfizer and BioNTech.
Associated Press journalists in Africa, Asia and Europe contributed to this report.
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