THAILAND SUSPENDS USE OF ASTRAZENECA VACCINE

Asia Coronavirus (COVID-19) World

Fri 12 March 2021:

Thailand on Friday suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine following a ban in several European countries over reports of severe or fatal blood clots in vaccinated people.

The country’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and some Cabinet members were scheduled to be vaccinated on Friday morning, but the plan was abruptly canceled, according to the local daily Bangkok Post.

Some were set to receive AstraZeneca vaccine, while others China’s Sinovac. All vaccinations were suspended.

This came after a number of countries, including Denmark, Norway, Italy, Austria and Bulgaria suspended the use of the jab.

The doses of AstraZeneca vaccine delivered to Thailand was not part of the controversial batch, the daily quoted Prof Dr. Prasit Watanapa, dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Siriraj Hospital of Mahidol University as saying.

He added that the investigation has been launched and if the vaccine is cleared, the government will resume the inoculations.

The first batch of 117,300 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines arrived in Thailand on 24 Feb, together with 200,000 doses of China’s Coronavac vaccine.

More than 30,000 people in Thailand have already received Coronavac since the country kicked off its vaccination programme on 28 February. Thailand says it will continue with its Coronavac rollout.

Around 5 million Europeans have already received the AstraZeneca vaccine. 

There have been about 30 cases in Europe of “thromboembolic events” – or developing blood clots – after the vaccine was administered, BBC reported

On Friday, Bulgaria became the latest country to suspend use of the vaccine, and it asked for a written statement from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) accounting for the jab’s safety.

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