AstraZeneca Removes Covid Jab From Market Due To Declining Demand

The Covid-19 vaccine, created during the epidemic by AstraZeneca, a pharmaceutical behemoth, has been taken off the market.

The vaccine’s manufacturer declared itself “incredibly proud” of it, however, the vaccine was pulled because of the sharp decline in demand.

Manufacturers of the vaccine consented to produce it “for the duration of the pandemic across the world, and in perpetuity to low- and middle-income countries on a not-for-profit basis.”

In over 183 nations, billions of dosages were produced and made accessible. Globally, the introduction of the vaccine is thought to have saved 6.3 million lives. However, AstraZeneca stated that the market’s demand has changed in favor of more recent vaccines designed to combat the emergence of new virus strains that cause COVID-19.

A spokesperson for AstraZeneca said: “We are incredibly proud of the role Vaxzevria played in ending the global pandemic. According to independent estimates, over 6.5 million lives were saved in the first year of use alone, and over three billion doses were supplied globally.

“Our efforts have been recognized by governments around the world and are widely regarded as being a critical component of ending the global pandemic.

“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. AstraZeneca has therefore decided to initiate withdrawal of the marketing authorizations for Vaxzevria within Europe.

“We will now work with regulators and our partners to align on a clear path forward to conclude this chapter and significant contribution to the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Dr. Michael Head; a senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, commented on the withdrawal, saying that the vaccine was an important and excellent component of the pandemic response in the majority of the world’s countries.

“There would have been far more deaths, hospitalizations, illness, and transmission, if we hadn’t had the AstraZeneca vaccine, alongside the other key vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna.

“There are known adverse events, such as blood clots, but these are rare, and the safety profile is overall very good. For comparison, the accepted rate of blood clots is much higher in medicines prescribed in areas of women’s health, such as the combined pill.

“The key reason for the withdrawal is likely to be that other Covid vaccines, such as Pfizer and Moderna, are essentially better products. AstraZeneca is very good, but the mRNA products (and probably Novavax too) are better.

“They have higher effectiveness and the mRNA platforms are more easily adapted towards the latest Covid variants. Thus, they form a key part of most countries’ longer-term strategies.”