AstraZeneca vaccine recommended only for Australians 60 and over
The AstraZeneca vaccine should now only be given to those aged 60 and above, the chief immunisation body has reportedly told the government.
Nine News and the ABC reported on Thursday morning that the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) made the recommendation after a 52-year-old woman died from a brain clot last week.
The recommendation was given to the government yesterday, but no official decision yet has been made.
It's believed the national cabinet meeting could be held this morning to discuss the issue.
Some researchers and medical specialists were calling for a review of the age groups who receive the AstraZeneca jab after last week's death.
The woman's death, the second believed to be linked to the vaccine in Australia, occurred after 3.6 million doses of the jab had been administered.
The TGA says it reviews all deaths reported after a vaccination is administered and compares them with expected natural death rates.
“To date, the observed number of deaths reported after vaccination is actually less than the expected number of deaths,” the TGA said in a statement.
“Each year in Australia, there are about 160,000 deaths, equating to 13,300 a month or 3050 each week. In the most recent reporting year, two-thirds of these deaths were in people aged 75 years and over.”
Last week, chief medical officer Paul Kelly said the new blood clotting case was “extremely unfortunate” but stressed it was “extremely rare”.
“I will point out that it is only the second death with now over 3.6 million doses of this vaccine being given across Australia, I will point out that this remains an extremely rare event to get these serious clots, but when they happen, as we have seen in this case, it can have tragic circumstances. My heart goes out to the family, and all the friends and colleagues of this particular person,” he said during Thursday afternoon’s press conference.
But he stated the AstraZeneca was still the recommended vaccine for those aged over 50, and Pfizer for under 50s.
But he said AstraZeneca was still the recommended vaccine for those aged over 50, and Pfizer for under 50s.
“There is definitely a much lower risk of this event, this clotting events, the older one gets. There is a definite cut point there at about the age of 50,” he said.
“(The woman’s death) is clearly concerning … but I would say this – we have made those decisions based on the risk and benefit equation. At the moment, the AstraZeneca is a really important element of the vaccine rollout. But nothing is compulsory. Individuals who have concerns about any medical procedure but including and in particular the private vaccine at this time should talk to their GP about those concerns.”