4 ms·

As far as I understand it, the EU member states are not generally short on doses, more on distribution and other regulatory issues. If they pause AZ, they can

As far as I understand it, the EU member states are not generally short on doses, more on distribution and other regulatory issues. If they pause AZ, they can use something else which is already being manufactured right now, and likely within the EU, quelle surprise. I would not be surprised if this is simply a political and economic snub from the EU, one of very many the UK can expect over the coming decades. The UK has spent the last half decade ENDLESSLY trying to score points against the EU on any and every topic. This sort of wrangling is part and parcel for the relationship the UK has chosen. Basically, if the current UK Government has gone anywhere NEAR this topic, don't expect the truth to linger. This certainly includes the chest-beating around the AZ vaccine, which the government were actually going to require be shipped with a fscking Union Flag on every vial. Edit: My understanding was based around stories like this suggesting some delays, that AZ were "striving" to deliver, and more dosed being ordered after AZ testing not covering over 65s (at the time), some hesitancy, and general mud slinging. When I say "generally short" I guess I should say that I doubt even the chest-beating Brits will be fully two-dose vaccinated to 80-90% before Autumn. It's been a year and a month or two is second order optimization in my view. If you are concerned about shortages, there are some other continents to consider first. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/24/astrazeneca-expected-to-miss-eu-covid-vaccine-supply-target-by-half-in-second-quarter-report https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/24/astrazeneca-ex... https://www.biopharma-reporter.com/Article/2021/02/18/EU-adds-350-million-COVID-19-vaccine-doses-from-Moderna-Pfizer https://www.biopharma-reporter.com/Article/2021/02/18/EU-add...

atleta 6y ago
Depends on how you define short on doses. We have less than what we've planned but we seem to adminster less than we have at the moment.
s_dev 6y ago
>As far as I understand it, the EU member states are not generally short on doses Let me correct that understanding. The EU is absolutely short on doses. AZ has only delivered 10% of what they promised. There is no doubt if the EU had a greater supply the vaccine rollout would be going much better.
rsynnott 6y ago
You understand it incorrectly. EU vaccination is largely constrained by doses. The exception is AZ, which in some countries has already seen people declining it, but AZ is currently a tiny portion of the EU's available vaccines due to AZ's failure to deliver. This will indeed delay things more if it isn't sorted out quickly (but possibly not THAT much more, because AZ is so behind on deliveries).
- detaro 6y ago
  And "some people declining it" doesn't mean there isn't a large backlog of people you can give it to.
detaro 6y ago
The last German news before this was "available vaccine slots need to be reduced due to missing deliveries". While the distribution certainly had and has its issues, using the limited available stock is less of a difficulty than handling the fact that the available stock is limited.

atleta 6y ago

Depends on how you define short on doses. We have less than what we've planned but we seem to adminster less than we have at the moment.

s_dev 6y ago

>As far as I understand it, the EU member states are not generally short on doses Let me correct that understanding. The EU is absolutely short on doses. AZ has only delivered 10% of what they promised. There is no doubt if the EU had a greater supply the vaccine rollout would be going much better.

rsynnott 6y ago

You understand it incorrectly. EU vaccination is largely constrained by doses. The exception is AZ, which in some countries has already seen people declining it, but AZ is currently a tiny portion of the EU's available vaccines due to AZ's failure to deliver. This will indeed delay things more if it isn't sorted out quickly (but possibly not THAT much more, because AZ is so behind on deliveries).

detaro 6y ago
And "some people declining it" doesn't mean there isn't a large backlog of people you can give it to.

detaro 6y ago

The last German news before this was "available vaccine slots need to be reduced due to missing deliveries". While the distribution certainly had and has its issues, using the limited available stock is less of a difficulty than handling the fact that the available stock is limited.