AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines effective, safe to use: EU

THE Covid-19 vaccine, AstraZeneca, is effective and safe to use in Papua New Guinea, according to the European Union (EU).
The EU delegation in PNG issued a statement after Opposition leader Belden Namah’s call to suspend the roll out of the AstraZeneca vaccine until all questions surrounding the potential side effects were resolved.
The EU said vaccination was one of the strongest means to put an end to the pandemic and everyone had to be part of the efforts to ensure that the roll-out proceeded quickly while ensuring that the safety monitoring continued as part of the EU pharmacovigilance process.
“The EU vaccines strategy is an example of the power of European collaboration and of European solidarity in action: Within six months, the EU secured a broad portfolio of almost 2.6 billion vaccine doses,” it said.
EU authorities granted a conditional marketing authorisation for the Covid-19 vaccine developed by BioNTech and Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca after a positive scientific recommendation based on a thorough assessment of the safety, effectiveness and quality of the vaccine by the European medicines agency (EMA).
“Security and trust in vaccines is key for vaccinations,” the EU said.
“The priority of the EU has always been the safety and the efficacy of any Covid-19 vaccine authorised for use in the EU.
“This is why we have ensured that all vaccines, before being administered, go through the rigorous and independent safety scrutiny of the EMA.
“This has always been non-negotiable for us.”
The EU’s conditional marketing authorisation also required a robust pharmacovigilance system to ensure that any possible medicine related problem, however rare it is, does not go undetected.
“As the EMA stated on March 18, the benefits of the vaccine in combating Covid-19 continue to outweigh the risks of side effects.”