MONTRÉAL, Québec (CU)_Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered reassurance over the safety of the Oxford/ AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Monday (15 March), as list of European nations suspended its use owing to concerns over reports of blood clots in those who had received the vaccine.
On Monday, Germany, Italy, France and Spain joined several other countries in the region who have paused the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, on account of safety concerns, although European regulators as well as British medical experts insist that the benefits of the shot outweighed the risk of side effects.
Meanwhile, PM Trudeau noted that Health Canada, which constantly analyses all available data about vaccines, have guaranteed that those approved in Canada are safe for use.
“Health Canada and our experts and scientists have spent an awful lot of time making sure every vaccine approved in Canada is both safe and effective,” he said. “Therefore, the very best vaccine for you to take is the first one that is offered to you.”
According to the Prime Minister, the AstraZeneca doses which have been delivered to Canada are not from the batch linked to the possible side-effects reported in Europe.
This decision by several European nations to suspend the use of the vaccine comes as Canada’s national vaccine expert panel is set to update its recommendations on if its use should be expanded.
Canada’s chief public health officer Dr Theresa Tam said in a statement that the government continues to work with international regulators, including the European Medicines Agency, in order to determine if there is any need to take action in Canada. Nevertheless, she also reiterated that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh any risk.
Meanwhile, pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said over the weekend that a review of 17 million patients who received their vaccine in Europe and the United Kingdom indicated that there is no elevated risk of blood clotting.
On the other hand, medical experts have raised concerns that mixed messages on the AstraZeneca vaccine would damage the public’s confidence in the shot.
