WHO: AstraZeneca vaccine should be used despite virus variants

By AFP 10 February 2021, 5:31 pm

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WHO vaccine experts say the AstraZeneca-Oxford COVID-19 vaccine could be used for people over the age of 65, and also in settings where variants of the virus are circulating.

“Taking the totality of available evidence into account, WHO recommends the vaccine for use in persons aged 65 years and older,” The 15-member Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) says in fresh recommendations.

It says the vaccine could also be used in places where “variants are present,” despite a recent study suggesting it was far less effective against a strain of the virus first detected in South Africa.