HEALTH authorities on Friday, March 12, 2021, said they see no reason to suspend Covid-19 vaccination using the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine over alleged blood clot concerns.
The Department of Health (DOH) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a regulatory agency under DOH, jointly issued this statement in the wake of reports that some European Union (EU) countries have suspended the use of AZ vaccine.
In their statement, the two agencies said the benefits provided by the AZ vaccine "continue to outweigh the risk."
“DOH-FDA find no reason to suspend AZ vaccine in the PH as benefits of vaccination continue to outweigh the risk. DOH, NTF, FDA will closely monitor the vaccine deployment program,” the joint statement read. NTF refers to the National Task Force Against Covid-19.
Denmark has temporarily suspended use of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine after reports of blood clots in some people, but its health authority said Thursday it has no evidence the vaccine was responsible.
Other experts pointed out that of the millions of AstraZeneca vaccine shots administered elsewhere, including in Britain, there have been no reported cases of the vaccine causing blood clots or related problems.
Denmark's Health Authority said its decision was “based on a precautionary principle” and that one person who developed a blood clot after vaccination had died.
"At present, it cannot be concluded whether there is a link between the vaccine and the blood clots,” authorities said. Danish officials did not say whether the patient had any underlying conditions and did not provide any other details.
Denmark's suspension of the AstraZeneca vaccine will last for at least two weeks, the agency said, adding it hinged on an evaluation by the EU medical regulator.
“Like others, I find (the pausing) and its consequences annoying. It’s too early to conclude in this case and when there is a risk, it must be investigated,” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said.
After the Danish announcement, Norway decided to follow suit and temporarily suspend the Anglo-Swedish company' s vaccine, which was developed by the University of Oxford, also saying that there are no proven links.
In addition, Italy’s pharmaceutical agency on Thursday ordered a precautionary ban on a particular batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine after what it said were “serious adverse events.”
In a statement, the European Medicines Agency said “the vaccine’s benefits continue to outweigh its risks and the vaccine can continue to be administered” while a closer evaluation of the blood clot cases continues.
“There is currently no indication that vaccination has caused these conditions,” the regulator said. It said the number of people with blood clots in vaccinated people was no higher than those who hadn't been inoculated.
The Philippines recently kicked off vaccinations using the AZ vaccine following the arrival of 525,000 doses that were donated through the Covax facility, the global initiative aimed at ensuring vaccine equity.
The private sector and local government units (LGU) in the Philippines have also signed supply agreements with AstraZeneca for 17 million doses to be delivered in the third quarter of 2021. (SunStar Philippines / AP)