Covid 19 coronavirus: UK recommends limiting AstraZeneca vaccine in under-30s
7 Apr, 2021 09:13 PM
6 minutes to read
Reports of blood clots have sparked concern about the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine. Photo / AP
AP
British authorities have recommended that the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine not be given to adults under 30 where possible because of strengthening evidence that the shot may be linked to rare blood clots.
Regulators in the United Kingdom and the European Union emphasised that the benefits of receiving the vaccine continue to outweigh the risks for most people even though the European Medicines Agency said it had found a possible link between the shot and the rare clots. British authorities recommended that people under 30 be offered alternatives to AstraZeneca but the EMA advised no such age restrictions, leaving it up to its member-countries to decide whether to limit its use.
U.K. advises limiting AstraZeneca in under-30s amid clot worry
FILE - In this Monday, March 22, 2021 file photo medical staff prepares an AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine during preparations at the vaccine center in Ebersberg near Munich, Germany. British authorities recommended Wednesday, April 7, that the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine not be given to adults under 30 where possible because of strengthening evidence that the shot may be linked to rare blood clots. The recommendation came as regulators both in the U.K. and the European Union emphasized that the benefits of receiving the vaccine continue to outweigh the risks for most people. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)
Two of the scientists behind Britain s AstraZeneca jab could both make £26million today as the tech firm that developed it hits the US stock market.
Oxford professors Sarah Gilbert and Adrian Hill both own 5.2 per cent of Vaccitech, which will later float on America s Nasdaq exchange.
The pair are alongside other scientists and investors who put money and expertise into the company after it was founded in 2016.
Companies House papers audited by MailOnline show Profs Gilbert and Hill each hold 2,500 ordinary shares in the firm, out of a total 47,827.
Experts have suggested it is targeting a value of some £509 million, meaning if this is realised, the two scientists stakes will be each worth £26.4million.
The Health 202: AstraZeneca s vaccine is still considered safe to take Paige Winfield Cunningham
with Alexandra Ellerbeck The available science still indicates the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine is safe for people to take, even as regulators investigate a potential red flag. That’s the nuance vaccine experts frustrated by the recent barrage of negative headlines want the American public to understand.
“I feel like in general the press has not been doing a good job,”
former Food and Drug Administration scientist Luciana Borio told me.
The coverage of AstraZeneca’s fumbles, she said, feels “alarmist.” “People do not want to take the vaccine in Europe now, and if that’s because of misinformation, then the pandemic’s going to continue to remain very active globally, which means everybody is vulnerable,” Borio said.
The AstraZeneca vaccine has seen its fair share of controversy this year. Locally, the AstraZeneca batch destined to vaccine health workers was deemed as ineffective and sold off, with government selecting to obtain the more effective Johnson and Johnson vaccine. Recently, however, concerns across Europe over the shot causing blood clots saw numerous countries suspending the rollout. After a prompt investigation, European health officials declared the vaccine safe to use. In the UK, the vaccine has been reserved for those over 30 years, with The Wall Street Journal reporting that ‘the European Union’s health agency said it had found possible links between the AstraZeneca vaccine and rare blood clots but that the shot’s benefits continue to outweigh the potential risks’. – Jarryd Neves