AstraZeneca starts global recall of its controversial Covid 19 vaccine

Days after admitting that its Covid 19 vaccine could cause blood clot in some people, British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca on Tuesday announced a global withdrawal of its Covid vaccine that was widely used to fight Covid 19 pandamic worldwide.

The company, however said the decision to recall its Covid 19 vaccine worldwide is due mainly to a surplus stocks of various new vaccine now available in the market, which has led to a decline in demand. It also said the vaccine is no more in production. 

AstraZeneca cited an abundance of newer vaccine options available to be the reason behind the vaccine withdrawal

AstraZeneca announced on Tuesday that it is globally withdrawing its COVID-19 vaccine, as reported by UK-based media outlet The Telegraph. The company cited an abundance of newer vaccine options available since the pandemic began.

AstraZeneca said it will also revoke marketing authorisations for its vaccine, Vaxzevria, within Europe.

The decision to withdraw the vaccine, however, comes after UK media report suggested that AstraZeneca has admitted the possible side effects of its Covid 19 vaccine, including blood clots and reduction in blood platelet count.

AstraZeneca, which faces class action lawsuit in the UK, however, continues its defence of the vaccine, saying that the bulk of evidence from clinical trials as well as real-world data pointed to an acceptable safety level of its Covid 19 vaccine. 

The blood clots, it said, were “extremely rare" after more than 50 such cases were reported in the UK in patients administered jabs of the vaccine. 

The company also cited regulatory support for the vaccine that the benefits of the vaccine outweighs its risks and potential side-effects.