EU contract with AstraZeneca on COVID-19 jabs ends June

By : AFP

Date: 9 May 2021 3:21pm WAT

This picture shows vials of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in Paris on March 11, 2021. - European countries can keep using AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine during an investigation into cases of blood clots that prompted Denmark, Norway and Iceland to suspend jabs, the EU's drug regulator said on March 11, 2021. (Photo by JOEL SAGET / AFP)

The European Union has not extended a contract for COVID-19 vaccines with British-Swedish manufacturer AstraZeneca, Internal Market Commissioner, Thierry Breton said on Sunday.

“We have not extended the order beyond the month of June.

“We will see. We will see what happens,” Breton told French broadcaster France Inter with regards to AstraZeneca.

AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine has been linked with a very rare risk of potential blood clots, especially for younger women, resulting in some countries restricting its use to only older age groups.

Breton expressed a positive view about the quality of AstraZeneca’s shot. “This is a good vaccine,” he said.

The European Commission on May 8, struck a deal with COVID-19 vaccine producer BioNTech/Pfizer to buy up to 1.8 billion additional doses until 2023.