PUTRAJAYA – Malaysia will proceed with the purchase and acquisition of AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines as there has been no evidence that the vaccine causes blood clots, said National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme Coordinating Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.
He said AstraZeneca had informed Malaysia on the side effects of the vaccine and so far, there has been no data to indicate any direct link between the vaccine and reports of blood clots in people, which had resulted in deaths in a few countries.
“As of now we will not take another stand. The purchase of the AstraZeneca vaccines remains the same,” he told a joint press conference with Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba on the development of the immunisation programme, here, today.
Several countries such as Denmark, Norway, Iceland and Thailand have reportedly paused using AstraZeneca’s vaccine following reports of blood clots occurring in several individuals after being vaccinated.
Khairy, who is also Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, said clinical data on the incidents would be studied.
He added that the possibility of vaccinating teenagers is being looked at, adding that Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca were already conducting clinical trials on individuals aged 12 to 16.
Meanwhile, Dr Adham said the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Division (NPRA) conducts thorough studies on any Covid-19 vaccine to be used in Malaysia.
“We trust the NPRA’s decisions, and in the case of the AstraZeneca vaccine we have looked into its quality and safety,” he said.
The Drug Control Authority (DCA) on March 2 approved the conditional registration of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine. – Bernama, March 15, 2021
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