Iraq Relies On WHO Assessment Of AstraZeneca Vaccine Safety - Health Ministry

Iraq Relies on WHO Assessment of AstraZeneca Vaccine Safety - Health Ministry

Iraq trusts the World Health Organization (WHO) when assessing risks related to the AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccine, Health Ministry spokesman Saif al-Badr told Sputnik

BAGHDAD (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th March, 2021) Iraq trusts the World Health Organization (WHO) when assessing risks related to the AstraZeneca/Oxford coronavirus vaccine, Health Ministry spokesman Saif al-Badr told Sputnik.

Since last week, the European Medicines Agency has been investigating reports of blood clotting in recipients of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Despite a number of EU countries halting the use of the vaccine, the WHO reiterated on Wednesday that it still recommends AstraZeneca for inoculations, believing that the benefits of the drug outweigh its risks.

"The health ministry relies on international science-based bodies. As for the AstraZeneca vaccine, it is approved by the WHO, the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) and the COVAX program," al-Badr said.

According to the official, several meetings have been held to assess risks related to AstraZeneca shots in the wake of the reported adverse events in Europe. But "from a scientific viewpoint," the danger of the vaccine has not been proven, while the presence of side effects is "natural," the spokesman added.

In December, Iraq approved the Pfizer vaccine for emergency use after striking a contract for the first batch of 1.5 million doses. In January, the country authorized shots from China's Sinopharm and UK-Swedish multinational AstraZeneca, signing a deal for 2 million doses with the latter. In March, Iraq added Russia's Sputnik V to its vaccine portfolio.