The Committee for Coordination of the Implementation of the Vaccination Plan against COVID-19 in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) is prolonging the vaccination process until tomorrow, March 18st, 2021. Until then, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) will examine each case individually, analyze the data and make a decision on the connection between the reported incidents and the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, as the Public Health Institute of FBiH announced.
The reason for this meeting was reported unfavorable reactions after vaccination in several countries (Austria, Italy, Germany, Denmark…) due to which some countries temporarily paused vaccination with this vaccine.
Until today, no serious adverse reactions have been reported in the FBiH after taking the AstraZeneca vaccine.
It is important to mention that the AstraZeneca vaccine has been tested on more than 30.000 people and that the EMA has analyzed extensive data showing that this vaccine is safe. Also, according to available data from the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK), to date, more than 17 million people have received the AstraZeneca vaccine, and fewer than 40 cases of blood clots have been reported. We need to emphasize that the benefits of the vaccine are still far greater than the risks, but it is necessary to investigate each incident and conduct a detailed analysis.
The Committee for Coordination will monitor all developments and, by following new information and evidence, decide on the further process of immunization with the Astrazeneca vaccine.