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HEALTH-VIRUS-THAILAND-VACCINES
Thai PM gets AstraZeneca jab as country resumes rollout despite concerns
BANGKOK, March 16, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – Thailand’s prime minister on Tuesday
received the AstraZeneca vaccine as the Southeast Asian nation began the
drug’s rollout, lifting a suspension that was triggered by European nations
raising safety concerns.
The country became the first outside of Europe to temporarily delay the
Covid-19 vaccine after several EU nations — including Ireland, the
Netherlands and Denmark — moved to delay it due to reports that some
recipients had suffered blood clots.
Thailand is already administering China’s Sinovac vaccine, with millions
more imported doses expected in the coming months.
But it was expected to add the Oxford/AstraZeneca injection to its vaccine
options on Friday, before health authorities abruptly suspended it as a
precaution.
By Monday, it had cleared its use after the World Health Organization, the
European Medicines Agency and many countries, including Britain and Canada,
declared it safe for use.
“Today, we will start injections on another vaccine. I think it will create
confidence for people to get the vaccine,” Thai premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha
said.
The gruff former general’s jab was initially scheduled for Friday but it
was postponed at the last minute following the delay. The country’s political
leaders went ahead with their jabs on Tuesday.
“Everyone is fine. I am an example today for having AstraZeneca,” the 67-
year-old, who was the first person to receive the jab in the Southeast Asian
country, said of his cabinet.
WHO safety experts were preparing to meet Tuesday over the vaccine melee as
the three largest EU nations — Germany, Italy and France — followed other
EU members in suspending the shot on Monday, dealing a blow to the global
immunisation campaign.
The vaccine was developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford in
Britain, where more than 11 million doses have been administered apparently
without any major problems.
Thailand is not set to start its own mass vaccination campaign until June,
with more than 60 million shots planned through domestic production of the
AstraZeneca vaccine.
But it is vaccinating essential workers and other groups with more than
100,000 AstraZeneca jabs imported for emergency use earlier this month.
AstraZeneca’s shot, among the cheapest available, was billed as the vaccine
of choice for poorer nations and the clot reports have had an impact beyond
Europe.
Indonesia delayed its AstraZeneca rollout on Monday, and Venezuela
announced it would not authorise the jab over fears of “complications”.
BSS/AFP/SSS/1701 hrs