The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) have announced during a press conference that under 30s will not receive the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine.
The decision has been made following concerns that people have died from the rare form of blood clots.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) safety committee concluded that “unusual blood clots with low blood platelets should be listed as very rare side effects.”
This comes as many European countries have halted their vaccination rollout with the AstraZeneca vaccine over the controversy and conflicting advice across Europe.
Under 30s will now be offered the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine instead due to the potential risk factors.
Scientists are still encouraging people to have the Oxford vaccine as there are huge benefits in preventing catching Covid as blood clots are exceptionally rare.
MHRA chief executive Dr June Raine said, “People should continue to get their vaccine when invited to do so.
“Our thorough and detailed review is ongoing into reports of very rare and specific types of blood clots with low platelets following the Covid-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca. ‘No decision has yet been made on any regulatory action.”
Professor Neil Furguson of Imperial College London, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, “In terms of the data at the moment, there is increasing evidence that there is a rare risk associated, particularly with the AstraZeneca vaccine but it may be associated at a lower level with other vaccines, of these unusual blood clots with low platelet counts.2
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