AstraZeneca alternative likely for 30s age group

This is because new concerns have been raised by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation about blood clotting.

The UK’s medicines safety regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, reported there have been 242 clotting cases after 28.5 million doses of the vaccine have been administered.

But the risk is slightly higher in younger age groups.

Its chief executive Dr June Raine said the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine continued to outweigh the risks for the ‘vast majority of people’.

There are two vaccines being used in Guernsey – Oxford AstraZeneca and Pfizer BioNTech – with a third from Moderna expected to be offered shortly.

In light of the JCVI announcement, work has started to assess the likely supply of all three vaccines within the Bailiwick to explore how those aged 30 to 39 can be offered one in accordance with the preferences expressed by the JCVI.

The JCVI has said it is a preference and the AstraZeneca vaccine can continue to be used for this age group.

Anyone who has already received their first dose of AstraZeneca, should receive the second dose when scheduled, unless they have experienced a major venous or arterial thrombosis and thrombocytopenia after the first.

Public Health officials is also looking at how to deliver the vaccines for younger people in Alderney and Sark.

Prof Wei Shen Lim, of JCVI, said that safety remains its number one priority.

‘As Covid-19 rates continue to come under control, we are advising that adults aged 18 to 39 years with no underlying health conditions are offered an alternative to the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine, if available, and if it does not cause delays in having the vaccine.’

The new advice comes a month after the JCVI advised that people aged 18 to 29 should be offered a different vaccine due to evidence linking AstraZeneca jabs to blood clots.