COVID19: Cyprus reboots AstraZeneca vaccination rollout

Cyprus resumed vaccinations of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine on Friday after the European Medicines Authority (EMA) ruled it was safe and effective, the Health Ministry said.

Authorities had suspended administering the jab on March 15, pending a review of the vaccine’s safety by the European drugs regulator.

The EMA said on Thursday it was still convinced the benefits of AstraZeneca’s vaccine outweighed the risks following an investigation into reports of blood disorders that prompted more than a dozen nations to suspend its use.

Vaccinations against COVID-19 with AstraZeneca will resume in Cyprus, as of Friday, after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) provided a scientific opinion, saying that the vaccine is not associated with an increase in the overall risk of blood clots in those who receive it, the Health Ministry announced.

Citizens who arranged an appointment to receive the jab were visiting the Vaccination Centres at their scheduled time on Friday.

The ministry said that inoculation appointments postponed this week would be rescheduled; more information will be provided later Friday.

The EMA said there is no evidence of a problem related to specific vaccine batches or particular manufacturing sites.

Around 20 million people in the UK and EEA had received the vaccine as of March 16.

The EMA reviewed only 7 cases of blood clots in multiple blood vessels (disseminated intravascular coagulation, DIC) and 18 cases of CVST.

A causal link with the vaccine is not proven but is possible and deserves further analysis, it noted.