AstraZeneca vaccine halted in Canada, three German cities amid blood clot worry

Canada and three German cities are no longer recommending the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to young people amid reports the inoculation is causing serious blood clots in some recipients, reports and officials said Tuesday. 

Canada’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommended Monday the British-made vaccine shouldn’t be given to people under the age of 55 while Berlin, Munich and Bradenburg have suspended the shot for people under the age of 60.  “NACI recommends that AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine should not be used in adults under 55 years of age at this time while the safety signal of Vaccine-Induced Prothrombotic Immune Thrombocytopenia (VIPIT) following vaccination with AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is investigated further,” Canadian officials wrote in a statement.