Philippines suspends use of AstraZeneca vaccine for people under 60

Vials of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine

* Health authorities carefully reviewing information * No reports yet of blood clots in the Philippines * Philippines due to receive 2.6 mn AstraZeneca shots in May Philippine health authorities suspended on Thursday the use of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine for people below 60 years of age to investigate reports of blood clots coming from overseas. The temporary suspension came after the European Medicines Agency recommended to include blood clots as a rare side effect of the AstraZeneca vaccine, Food and Drug Administration chief Rolando Enrique Domingo said in a statement, adding that there were no reports of such adverse side effects in the country. ‘This temporary suspension does not mean that the vaccine is unsafe or ineffective - it just means that we are taking precautionary measures to ensure the safety of every Filipino,’ Domingo said.