Nations Issue New Guidelines after Blood Clots Linked to AstraZeneca Vaccine

Several nations have issued new guidelines over the use of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine after the European Union’s medical regulator announced a link between the vaccine and rare, possibly fatal blood clots.

Britain, where the vaccine was developed jointly by the British-Swedish drugmaker and scientists at the University of Oxford, says it will offer alternatives for adults under 30. Oxford researchers have also suspended a clinical trial of the AstraZeneca vaccine involving young children and teenagers as British drug regulators conduct a safety review of the two-shot regimen. Reuters says Spain and the Philippines will limit the vaccine to people older than 60, while The Washington Post says Italy has issued similar guidelines. The European Medicines Agency said Wednesday the blood clots should be listed as a very rare side effect of the AstraZeneca vaccine, but continued to emphasize that its overall benefits outweigh any risks. Rare blood clots have been associated with the deaths of at least 14 people across Europe.