AstraZeneca Withdraws COVID-19 Vaccine Due to Low Demand
In a surprising move, AstraZeneca has announced the global withdrawal of its COVID-19 vaccine, Vaxzevria, citing low demand and an abundance of other vaccines available on the market. The company revealed its plans to withdraw the marketing authorizations for Vaxzevria within Europe, as the vaccine was never approved in the U.S. by the FDA.
Despite this setback, AstraZeneca reported that more than 3 billion doses of Vaxzevria were supplied globally, leading to the saving of over 6.5 million lives in the first year of use. However, the company did acknowledge rare side effects of the vaccine, including blood clots and low blood platelet counts. The European Medicines Agency even listed Guillain-Barré syndrome as a very rare side effect of Vaxzevria in 2021.
The decision to withdraw the vaccine was finalized on Tuesday, following the firm’s application made on March 5. It was noted that many countries had already ceased the distribution of Vaxzevria before the official announcement from AstraZeneca.
With the decline in COVID-19 medicine sales, AstraZeneca has now shifted its focus towards respiratory syncytial virus vaccines and obesity drugs. The company’s decision to move away from the COVID-19 vaccine market may have a significant impact on the ongoing global vaccination efforts.
