#TurksandCaicos, March 15, 2021 – The Caribbean Public Health Agency is aware that some countries in the European Union have suspended their AstraZeneca vaccination campaign, as a result of reports of rare blood coagulation disorders in people who had received the vaccine. This was done as a precautionary measure while a full investigation is conducted into the reports. At present, it cannot be determined whether there is a link between the vaccine and the disorders.
Adverse reactions that happen following immunisation with any
vaccine need to be fully investigated to rule out various factors, for example
concomitant illnesses, progression of a disease, and batch assessment, before a
final decision is made by the health authorities.
It must be noted that the vaccine being used in the Caribbean is
not the same version or batch as the one in Europe.
The World Health Organization’s Global Advisory Committee on
Vaccine Safety (GACVS) systematically reviews any vaccine safety signals and concerns
related to COVID-19 vaccine safety. This committee is carefully assessing
the current reports on the Astra Zeneca vaccine. As soon as WHO has gained a
full understanding of these events, the findings and any changes to current
recommendations will be immediately communicated to regional and international
public health partners which includes CARPHA.
The WHO states that “Vaccination against COVID-19 will not
reduce deaths from other causes. Deaths from other causes will continue to
occur, including after vaccination, but causally unrelated. As of 9
March, over 268 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered since
the start of the pandemic, based on data reported to WHO by national
governments. No cases of death have been found to have been caused by COVID-19
vaccines to date.[1]
We want to reassure our Member States that CARPHA’s Caribbean
Regulatory System (CRS) applies its reliance procedure to verify vaccines with
emergency use authorization granted by stringent regulatory authorities of
reference.
CARPHA encourages
persons who have been vaccinated with any of the COVID-19 vaccines available in
their country, to report adverse events that occur after vaccination to the
local health authorities.