‘Benefits outweigh risks’

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Health Ministry Permanent Secretary Dr James Fong. Picture: SUPPLIED/FIJI GOVT

The benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine’s effective protection against COVID-19 far outweigh the risks.

This, according to permanent secretary for the Ministry of Health and Medical Services Dr James Fong, amid investigations by British and European regulators into an association between the vaccine and a rare blood-clotting disorder called “thrombosis with thrombocytopenia”.

“To put those numbers into perspective, receiving this vaccine is safer than riding in a car or a bus, or even walking down a set of stairs,” he said.

“I’ve been vaccinated and so has my family. I encourage all eligible Fijians to do the same. We may not have community transmission of the coronavirus, but that’s no excuse to be complacent about protecting ourselves.”

Dr Fong said the World Health Organization, the European Medicines Agency, and the United Kingdom’s regulatory authority had all stated that the benefits of the vaccine outweighed the risks.

“We will continue to monitor the situation and adjust our strategy should the need arise.”

In a statement released on Friday, Dr Fong said this unusual blood-clotting event had been plausibly identified as an extremely rare but serious side effect, affecting an estimated four to 10 people out of every million people, with death in an estimated 25 per cent of cases.

“In line with the most recent evidence, the ministry is recommending that individuals who had received their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine take the second dose.”

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