AstraZeneca Withdraws COVID-19 Vaccine
Summary from the AllSides News Team
U.K.-based pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca announced Wednesday that it would withdraw its COVID-19 vaccine Vaxzevria worldwide, weeks after withdrawing the vaccine’s European Union marketing authorization.
Key Quote: An AstraZeneca statement provided to news outlets said: “As multiple, variant COVID-19 vaccines have since been developed, there is a surplus of available updated vaccines. This has led to a decline in demand for Vaxzevria, which is no longer being manufactured or supplied.”
Low Demand: AstraZeneca withdrew its application for FDA approval for the vaccine in 2022. Several countries had already stopped circulating the Vaxzevria, and AstraZeneca said it had not made any revenue on the vaccine since April 2023.
Health Risks: In late April, AstraZeneca said in court documents that its COVID-19 vaccine “can, in very rare cases, cause TTS,” a condition causing blood clots and a low blood platelet count. However, the company pointed to an earlier 2021 product information update saying the vaccine was possibly “capable, in very rare cases, of being a trigger for” TTS.
How the Media Covered It: News coverage was more common in European and Indian outlets, likely because the AstraZeneca vaccine was not approved in the U.S. Some coverage echoed old partisan attitudes about the vaccines. While CNN (Lean Left bias) introduced the vaccine as “highly successful” and highlighted the “low demand” explanation, Fox Business (Lean Right bias) and some U.K. outlets highlighted the recent side effects news, potentially implying that it was the true reason for the withdrawal. Coverage across the spectrum noted that the vaccine saved millions of lives during the pandemic.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Right
AstraZeneca to withdraw its COVID-19 vaccine globally as demand dips, rare side effects revealedThe pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said on Tuesday it is withdrawing its COVID-19 vaccine worldwide citing low demand and a "surplus of available updated vaccines" since the pandemic.
The vaccine — called Vaxzevria – was one of a number of shots released onto the market by pharmaceutical companies aimed at preventing people from catching COVID-19.
The company said it would proceed to withdraw Vaxzevria's marketing authorizations within Europe. The vaccine was never approved in the U.S. by the FDA.
"As multiple, variant COVID-19 vaccines have since been developed there is a surplus of available updated...
From the Left
AstraZeneca withdraws Covid-19 vaccine worldwide, citing surplus of newer vaccinesAstraZeneca has begun the worldwide withdrawal of its Covid-19 vaccine due to a “surplus of available updated vaccines” that target new variants of the virus.
The announcement follows the pharmaceutical company in March voluntarily withdrawing its European Union marketing authorisation, which is the approval to market a medicine in member states.
On 7 May, the European Medicines Agency issued a notice that the vaccine is no longer authorised for use.
In a statement, AstraZeneca said the decision was made because there is now a variety of newer vaccines available that have been adapted to...
From the Center
AstraZeneca withdraws COVID-19 vaccine, citing low demandThe pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca has reportedly withdrawn its COVID-19 vaccine Vaxzevria, also known as Covishield, worldwide, citing commercial reasons for the decision.
"As multiple, variant COVID-19 vaccines have since been developed, there is a surplus of available updated vaccines. This has led to a decline in demand for Vaxzevria, which is no longer being manufactured or supplied," various media outlets quoted the company was quoted as saying.
A document hosted by the EU's European Medicines Agency website confirmed that Vaxzevria was no longer authorized in the region.
In an email to DW, virologist Wolfgang Preiser said "the demand for SARS-CoV-2...
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