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 Australia has administered 3.3 million doses of the AstraZeneca
vaccine, and it has been linked to 60 cases of blood clots, the
government has said. So far, two people have died, which Hunt said
has driven the policy shift.
"The government places safety above all else," Hunt told reporters
in Canberra.
"This updated advice received today is based on new evidence
demonstrating a higher risk for the very rare (thrombocytopenia
syndrome) condition in the 50-59 year-old age group."
Australia in April moved to limit the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine
to people over 50 years old.
Several European Union member states have stopped administering the
AstraZeneca vaccine to people below a certain age, usually ranging
from 50 to 65, restricting its use to older people, due to very rare
cases of blood clotting, mainly among young people.
Hunt said the recommendation would not delay its inoculation
timetable, which has a target of giving at least one COVID-19
vaccine dose to every Australian before the end of 2021.
Australia in April expanded its order of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine
to 40 million doses, while it has also ordered 25 million shots from
Moderna .
Australia's amended vaccine policy comes as the country's most
populous state battles to contain a cluster of COVID-19 cases.
[to top of second column] |
 New South Wales said it now
recorded four local cases of COVID-19, with the
source of the outbreak still unclear.
"At this stage, we are all on high alert," NSW
state Premier Gladys Berejiklian told reporters
in Sydney.
A man in his 60s, who works as a driver for
international airline crews, was detected with
the virus on Wednesday, the state's first case
in more than a month, and his wife has since
tested positive. Genetic tests found the man has
the Delta virus strain, officials said.
The Delta variant, which has been classified by
the World Health Organisation (WHO) as among the
four COVID-19 variants of concern due to
evidence that they spread more easily, likely
caused the latest devastating outbreak in India.
Nearly a dozen venues in Sydney including a
cinema in a shopping centre in the popular
tourist spot of Bondi and a supermarket have
been listed as virus hotspots.
Australia has successfully suppressed past
outbreaks through snap lockdowns, swift contact
tracing and tough social distancing rules. It
has reported just under 30,300 cases and 910
deaths since the pandemic began.
(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney and Colin
Packham in Canberra; Editing by Raju
Gopalakrishnan)
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