Reports of blood clot-related injuries and death after the AstraZeneca COVID vaccine have prompted more than 20 countries to suspend or delay it. Prosecutors in Italy even seized 393,600 doses from one batch following the death of a man hours after he was vaccinated.
But, despite the mounting injury reports, health officials continue to deny a connection with the vaccine, instead saying its benefits outweigh the risks. “This does not necessarily mean these events [deaths and injuries] are linked to the vaccine, but it’s routine practice to investigate them, and it shows that the surveillance system works and effective controls are in place,” WHO’s director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
European regulators are also continuing to defend the vaccine, even as the European Medicines Agency looks into the reports. The AstraZeneca vaccine has not yet been approved for use in the U.S.
SOURCE: The Defender March 16, 2021