France, Germany struggle to sell AstraZeneca vaccine safety
In this file photo taken on Feb 26, a vial of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which makes it possible to produce 10 doses to combat the Coronavirus epidemic, is received by Dr Jean Louis Bensoussan, a general practitioner in Gragnague near Toulouse, France. (AFP photo)
Already facing a daunting Covid vaccination challenge, French and German authorities are fighting to convince more people that a jab from the pharma giant AstraZeneca is just as effective as others.
Stocks of the vaccines from the British-Swedish firm are going unused in both countries, depriving officials of a crucial tool to help end a pandemic that has been a social and economic calamity on a scale not seen since World War II.
Only 273,000 AstraZeneca doses have been administered in France out of 1.7 million received as of end-February, according to health ministry figures.
The poor take-up comes even as the target group for the jabs, health workers over 50 and people with other serious health risks, can get the vaccine directly from their doctor instead of waiting for appointments at vaccination centres.
But both France and Germany refused to authorise the vaccine for people over 65, fanning fears over its effectiveness compared to the two others approved for Europe, from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
Jacques Battistoni, head of the MG France doctors' union, last week denounced the widespread "AstraZeneca bashing" that was causing many vials to go unused.
Health Minister Olivier Veran, himself a doctor, tried to dispel the doubts by getting the vaccine live on TV.
And the country's vaccination coordinator, Alain Fischer, complained last week that the "bad press" surrounding the shot was "deeply unfair".
But so far France is not allowing more segments of the population to get the vaccine, nor allowing it for the elderly despite such approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
Even President Emmanuel Macron didn't do any favours when he described the AstraZeneca jab as "quasi-ineffective for people over 65" — just hours before the EMA gave its green light.
Mr Macron will make Monday his first visit to a Covid vaccination centre, in the Paris suburb of Bobigny.
'Every day counts'
In Germany as well, calls are growing to relax the vaccination priority list to make sure no AstraZeneca shots go to waste.
By Feb 23, 1.45 million doses had been delivered to Germany, of which only 240,000 had been injected.
The controversy has contributed to the government's decision to move teachers and childcare workers from priority group three to group two.
But some regional leaders are urging Germany to go further still, with Bavarian prime minister Markus Soeder on Sunday saying "not a single AstraZeneca dose should be left over or thrown out".
"Before that happens: vaccinate anyone who wants it," he told the Bild am Sonntag daily. "Every day counts."
The leader of Baden-Wuerttemberg state, Winfried Kretschmann, said Germany could not afford to have vaccines going unused because some of those entitled to it are snubbing it.
"In that case, we should loosen our strict regulations and vaccinate people even if it's not their turn yet under the priority guidelines," Mr Kretschmann told the Welt am Sonntag daily.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and Germany's 16 regional leaders are meeting on Wednesday to discuss the next steps in the fight against the pandemic.
Mrs Merkel herself praised the AstraZeneca shot as "a vaccine that can be trusted" in an interview last week and pleaded with Germans not to pick and choose their vaccines.
When asked if she would lead by example and take the AstraZeneca vaccine, Merkel replied that she was not eligible for this particular jab given that she was 66 years old.
The question is sure to re-emerge however if Germany's vaccine commission does decide to recommend the jab for those aged 65 and over.
The STIKO commission "will very soon publish a new updated recommendation" after a study showed it to be effective for the elderly, its head Thomas Mertens said last Friday.
Stocks of the vaccines from the British-Swedish firm are going unused in both countries, depriving officials of a crucial tool to help end a pandemic that has been a social and economic calamity on a scale not seen since World War II.
Only 273,000 AstraZeneca doses have been administered in France out of 1.7 million received as of end-February, according to health ministry figures.
The poor take-up comes even as the target group for the jabs, health workers over 50 and people with other serious health risks, can get the vaccine directly from their doctor instead of waiting for appointments at vaccination centres.
But both France and Germany refused to authorise the vaccine for people over 65, fanning fears over its effectiveness compared to the two others approved for Europe, from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
Jacques Battistoni, head of the MG France doctors' union, last week denounced the widespread "AstraZeneca bashing" that was causing many vials to go unused.
Health Minister Olivier Veran, himself a doctor, tried to dispel the doubts by getting the vaccine live on TV.
And the country's vaccination coordinator, Alain Fischer, complained last week that the "bad press" surrounding the shot was "deeply unfair".
But so far France is not allowing more segments of the population to get the vaccine, nor allowing it for the elderly despite such approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
Even President Emmanuel Macron didn't do any favours when he described the AstraZeneca jab as "quasi-ineffective for people over 65" — just hours before the EMA gave its green light.
Mr Macron will make Monday his first visit to a Covid vaccination centre, in the Paris suburb of Bobigny.
'Every day counts'
In Germany as well, calls are growing to relax the vaccination priority list to make sure no AstraZeneca shots go to waste.
By Feb 23, 1.45 million doses had been delivered to Germany, of which only 240,000 had been injected.
The controversy has contributed to the government's decision to move teachers and childcare workers from priority group three to group two.
But some regional leaders are urging Germany to go further still, with Bavarian prime minister Markus Soeder on Sunday saying "not a single AstraZeneca dose should be left over or thrown out".
"Before that happens: vaccinate anyone who wants it," he told the Bild am Sonntag daily. "Every day counts."
The leader of Baden-Wuerttemberg state, Winfried Kretschmann, said Germany could not afford to have vaccines going unused because some of those entitled to it are snubbing it.
"In that case, we should loosen our strict regulations and vaccinate people even if it's not their turn yet under the priority guidelines," Mr Kretschmann told the Welt am Sonntag daily.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and Germany's 16 regional leaders are meeting on Wednesday to discuss the next steps in the fight against the pandemic.
Mrs Merkel herself praised the AstraZeneca shot as "a vaccine that can be trusted" in an interview last week and pleaded with Germans not to pick and choose their vaccines.
When asked if she would lead by example and take the AstraZeneca vaccine, Merkel replied that she was not eligible for this particular jab given that she was 66 years old.
The question is sure to re-emerge however if Germany's vaccine commission does decide to recommend the jab for those aged 65 and over.
The STIKO commission "will very soon publish a new updated recommendation" after a study showed it to be effective for the elderly, its head Thomas Mertens said last Friday.
They should go for alternatives like Sinovac.
ReplyDeleteActually, the Bkk Post title is Very misleading.
ReplyDeleteVaccine safety and effectiveness are two separate issues.
A vaccine can possibly be safe but lacking effectiveness, or an effective vaccine can have safety concerns e.g side effects.
Nobody in authority has raised doubts about the AstraZeneca vaccine safety.
Seems to be some doubts about effectiveness with regard to the South African variant, but people shouldn't get fixated on that to refuse the vaccine.
The doubts on over-65 people is not based in clear evidence, UK hasn-t raised any Red Flags, then again others will say UK is biased for its home-grown design
My relatives and ethnic Chinese friends all already convinced Coronavac is the best, safest, Covid-19 vaccine. Followed by Sputnik.
ReplyDeletePfizer, AstraZeneca all dangerous Western profit-first vaccines, refuse to be vaccinated if that is the only choice.
Coronavac is more recognizable by its often used name Sinovac la. Chinese, that is real Chinese, not OCBC pretend-chinese/tipu-cina( hehe ), are smart cookies, especially the elderly, bless 'em LOL.
DeleteThese smart cookies can smell a dead rat from a mile away, especially 'em whiteface tikus. That's the reason they are keeping a wide berth, at least 10 feet long, from the auta Pfizer mRNA masquerading as a vaccine where thousands were reported to have severe adverse reactions, with some even fainting immediately after injection, and more than 3 dozens deaths so far ( those officially reported !). Pfizer is laughing all the way to the bank and pooh pooh away the deaths...rumour even make the rounds that Pfizer CEO has still yet to vaccinate himself, hehehe...a dead man won't get to enjoy the billions he had just raked in, right ? Even our very own KJ had deferred the Pfizer...he truly cared for the rakyat la....smart boy, errr kind boy LOL
MonstrousBigot is broken hearted by now...how DARE they, how ungrateful these Asians! these inferior Asians who DARE spurn angmo brand !...even if they were to die, then they should be grateful to die with an angmo poison ! It will be a privilege to die with an angmo poison than to live with a safe and effective Chinese vaccine. Sheesh, orang Cina tak pandai fikir la.
You are most welcome to prefer the 50% effective vaccine.
DeleteThere r many 'conspiracies' on the DarkWeb about the efficacy of the various covid-19 vaccines.
ReplyDeleteMany r pure speculations & rumours based on pure fears & imaginations. However, there r some raised by the rightful medical scientists that r ASKING the right questions based on the correct scientific doubts.
The Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, codenamed AZD1222 has created many self-induced doubts by
1st - a doggie statistical finding in human trials about the effectiveness of its half dosed (mistakenly diluted) vs the full dosed (questionable samplings). These doggie clinical testings have unintentionally created real fears about its efficacy.
2nd - the nature of the creation of AZD1222. AZD1222, is using a modified chimpanzee adenovirus ChAdOx1 vector via intramuscular injection.
Note The AZD1222 vaccine is a replication-deficient simian adenovirus vector, containing the full‐length codon‐optimised coding sequence of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein along with a tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) leader sequence.
The spike S1 protein is an external protein that enables the SARS-type coronavirus to enter cells through the enzymatic domain of ACE2.[25] After vaccination, this spike protein is produced, prompting the immune system to attack the coronavirus if it later infects the body.
So it agitates the body immune system to produce T-cells by masquerading a different but live yet replication-deficient adenovirus with SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.
The reactived T-cells kills anything that come with a SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. But it WON'T kill one with a different spoke protein code.
Though the replication-deficient simian adenovirus vector can't replicate but it can still mutate bcoz it's alive! The new mutation render the final effectiveness of the vaccine to combat the designed intention as the spike protein has mutated by the based simian adenovirus. Most likely a different kind of body T-cells r been produced with very harmful cytokine storm in the older people!
Thus, simulating the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein is the quickest way to produce a vaccine. But spike protein ISN'T the only mean that SARS-CoV-2 enter the body cell to replicate. This field of study is still in its early stage with many unknowns!
The next SARS-CoV-2 storm will most likely cause by the mRNA derived vaccines. As RNA is more easily manipulated, both by nature & artificial, the mutation rate would speed up even though SARS-CoV-2 is known to be slow in evolution!
Just beware of the Ides of March.
Ooop… those China vaccines bashers, do remember to keep to yr words.
You still trying to peddle the vaccine that Brazil's Butantan Vaccine Agency declared as having 53 % effectiveness?
DeleteI know the tactic, sell you brand by bad-mouthing the alternatives.
the phase 3 result fully out or still tokeasttokwesttokskytokearth?
DeleteWakakakakakaka…
DeleteBoth blurred mfers of knowing thing!
1) the Brazilian p3 trial is still ongoing with the Chinese vaccine. The announcement from Butantan Vaccine Agency is preliminary but been made to allow mass inoculation - just like those western concoctions been allowed to be used before p3 trial completion!
2) show yr p3 result of the Chinese vaccine lah?
Or u r waiting for that f*cked Formosa to come out with one to echo out from yr fart filled well?
Have some courtesy lah when defending or putting forward your opinion!
ReplyDeletewhere got opinion, only wolf warrior propaganda n self praise.
DeleteStill one up than those farts permeating from the fart filled well by those demoNcratic katak!
Delete