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AstraZeneca vaccine risk is ‘not concerning, appears more politically motivated’: doctor

More than a dozen countries in the European Union have suspended distribution of AstraZeneca’s vaccine due to blood clot concerns, further complicating a vaccination effort that was already lagging across the region.

The call to pause the rollout is being questioned by some health experts, who say the data simply does not support the decision. It is “important to contextualize” what’s being reported because the risk of blood clots is no higher among vaccinated people than among the general population, Dr. Mati Hlatshwayo Davis, an infectious disease physician at Washington University School of Medicine, told Yahoo Finance. “There is, quite frankly, not a concerning signal here. This appears to be more politically motivated than anything to do with the actual science.”

FILE - In this Monday, March 15, 2021 file photo a vial of AstraZeneca vaccine is pictured in a pharmacy in Boulogne Billancourt, outside Paris. At least a dozen countries including Germany, France, Italy and Spain have now temporarily suspended their use of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine after reports last week that some people in Denmark and Norway who got a dose developed blood clots, even though there's no evidence that the shot was responsible. The European Medicines Agency and the World Health Organization say the data available don't suggest the vaccine caused the clots and that people should continue to be immunized. Here's a look at what we know — and what we don't.(AP Photo/Christophe Ena, File)
A vial of AstraZeneca vaccine is pictured in a pharmacy in Boulogne Billancourt, outside Paris. At least a dozen countries including Germany, France, Italy and Spain have now temporarily suspended their use of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Political pressure is something health experts have pointed to as a reason for the suspension. After Germany made the decision to suspend the shot nationwide, the theory is that other countries followed suit out of an abundance of caution. As of Wednesday, 13 European countries had halted the vaccine, including Germany, Italy, Spain and France.

Europe’s top drug agency, the European Medicines Agency, is investigating the matter. In a news conference this week, the agency’s director Emer Cooke said she remains "firmly convinced" the benefits of AstraZeneca’s vaccine outweigh the concerns and that “there is no indication that vaccination has caused these conditions.”

‘Overcoming this hesitation, fear and mistrust is critical’

AstraZeneca’s vaccine suspension could potentially hurt its credibility and therefore jeopardize inoculation efforts worldwide.

AstraZeneca’s vaccine, which is cheaper and easier to store, plays a critical role in COVAX, the program designed to accelerate access to COVID-19 vaccines for middle- and lower-income countries. The program is expected to deliver 237 million doses of the vaccine to 142 countries by the end of May.

“It’s a big hurdle. I am not going to down play it,” said Davis. “It is so unfortunate that this has happened. AstraZeneca is one of the most important distributors that we have… Overcoming this hesitation, this fear, this mistrust around this data is going to be critical.”

Support for AstraZeneca's vaccine was already suffering ahead of the latest safety concerns. A recent survey from YouGov, a UK-based market research and data analytics firm, found that Europeans were more confident in the safety of Moderna and Pfizer's vaccines compared to the shot produced by AstraZeneca.

AstraZeneca defends vaccine safety

AstraZeneca continues to defend its vaccine, arguing clinical trials have proven its safety.

In a statement released on Sunday, AstraZeneca’s Chief Medical Officer Ann Taylor said that of the 17 million people vaccinated in the EU and UK with the vaccine, “the number of cases of blood clots reported in this group is lower than the hundreds of cases that would be expected among the general population. The nature of the pandemic has led to increased attention in individual cases and we are going beyond the standard practices for safety monitoring of licensed medicines in reporting vaccine events, to ensure public safety.”

The World Health Organization has said it is reviewing reports related to concerns about the shot, but in the meantime, continues to support and recommend its use.

Seana Smith anchors Yahoo Finance Live’s 3-5 p.m. ET program. Follow her on Twitter @SeanaNSmith

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