Sweden against giving EU-approved covid jab to under 30s – EURACTIV.com
The EU-approved vaccine against covid-19 Nuvaxovid should not be given to people aged 30 and under due to increased health risks with it, the Public Health Agency announced this week.
Nuvaxovid was the fifth covid-19 vaccine approved by the EU.
After approving the vaccine for people 18 and older, the Public Health Agency announced Tuesday that the vaccine poses a danger to people 30 and younger because it increases the risk of myocarditis and pericarditis — better known as myocarditis and pericardial effusion — although the risk remains “very low”.
“We are monitoring the situation closely and waiting for more information. But anyone who is younger and has recently been vaccinated with Nuvaxovid need not worry. The risk is very low, and you can continue with the next dose with another vaccine,” says Sören Andersson, manager for the Vaccination Program Unit, in a statement published on the health authority’s website.
The authority said the vaccine has not yet been widely used in Sweden, and the total number of doses administered has reached around 7,000.
Sweden has previously paused the administration of other covid-19 vaccines.
While deciding to only administer Moderna’s Spikevax vaccine to people born in 1991, it currently decided to stop AstraZeneca altogether despite the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommending reintroduction of the vaccine for people over 65 years ago. side effects such as blood clots combined with low platelet levels or bleeding were only found in people under 65 years of age.
Since early 2022, the agency has recommended that the Moderna vaccine not be used on people under 30. For people in that age group, it generally suggests the Pfizer jab.
Sweden’s announcement came at a time when the EU Commission remained silent on how to buy covid-19 vaccine contracts during the pandemic when the alleged links between Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the CEO of Pfizer were called into question.
On October 14, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) announced that an investigation is being launched into the European Commission’s purchase of vaccines during the pandemic.
(Charles Szumski | EURACTIV.com)