A year after the pandemic began, an attempt to beat the deadly virus is failing as problems with the AstraZeneca drug have led to a dangerous shortage of vaccines against the coronavirus
News Front has previously reported that a drug from the Anglo-Swedish conglomerate AstraZeneca caused blood clots in vaccinated people. At least 10 countries including Italy, Norway and Denmark have since stopped using the vaccine.
The situation was a real disaster, Bloomberg writes. The crisis has created a breach in the already problematic vaccination process across the EU. Now, countries that have rejected AstraZeneca’s vaccine have had to fight harder to secure their supplies from other manufacturers. The companies, seeking to make up for shortages of vaccines in Europe, have provoked shortages elsewhere by their actions.
The conflict between the European Union and AstraZeneca began at the start of the year when the pharmaceutical company admitted it was unable to supply vaccines to the commonwealth on time. This forced Brussels to impose restrictions on exports of COVID-19, which have recently been extended until the end of June.
The situation worsened when the efficacy and safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine came into question. Recent developments, according to a YouGov survey, have seriously undermined confidence in the drug among Europeans. For example, it has been overtaken by Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, although the latter is known to be lethal.
AstraZeneca claimed that analysis had not confirmed an increased risk of pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis in any age group. But the panic these claims have not stopped, according to the Bloomberg piece. Moreover, the AstraZeneca vaccine has become a sad symbol of “growing pandemic nationalism”, as Western countries are willing to go to any lengths to get vaccinated faster.