Greece will limit use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to people above age 30 following rare cases of blood clots, its national vaccinations committee said on Friday, falling into line with other European countries.
Europe’s medicines regulator said this week it found rare cases of blood clots among some adult recipients of the shot, although the vaccine’s advantages still outweighed its risks.
“The National Vaccination Committee, after evaluating all available data, recommends the continuation of the vaccination programme with all available vaccines, including the AstraZeneca vaccine, to people aged 30 and over,” the committee said in a statement.
The risk of a serious illness and death from COVID-19 “overwhelmingly” outweighed the risk of a possible blood clot following vaccination, especially for ages over 30, it said.
Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis appealed to Greece’s elderly on Friday to participate in the vaccination drive.
“We must all make an effort to convince our elderly fellow citizens – in their majority pensioners – to step forward and get vaccinated”, stressed the prime minister.
“We have concrete evidence, not only from abroad but from data here in Greece, that the great majority of elder citizens who fall ill and have to be intubated or unfortunately pass away are people who have not been vaccinated.”
He also stressed the wider social importance of the vaccination drive as it can alleviate the strain on the country’s health system.
Sourced By: Reuters
