Concerns continue to surround the AstraZeneca vaccine, this time coming from the United States.

Earlier today, U.S. federal officials said AstraZeneca may have released outdated information about the trials for its vaccine, thus overstating its efficacy.

U.S. federal agency, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) said AstaZeneca, “may have included outdated information that provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data”.

The vaccine has received a barrage of bad press over blood clotting, large scale production problems and how effective it really is.

Last week, many European countries including Germany, Norway, Italy, Spain and France suspended inoculating their populations with the AstraZeneca vaccine. However, this did not deter European regulators from continuing to recommend it.

Jamaica has given AstaZeneca the all clear with the Ministry of Health and Wellness insisting that citizens should take the vaccine.

On March 15, Jamaica received 14,400 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine through the COVAX facility. This followed the country getting a gift of 50,000 doses from India in the preceding week.

The concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine are coming from the developed and more affluent western countries. Should Jamaica take note, heed caution and suspend this vaccine until it there are no further questions around it?

The U.S. has to date not passed it fit to be administered and is insisting that the Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines be distributed across the country.

On March 16, Martinique became the first Caribbean country to suspend use of the AstraZeneca vaccine with immediate effect. Jamaica said it would be guided by the World Health Organization (WHO) as to the application of vaccines. The WHO has said it considers that the benefits of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh its risks and has recommended that vaccinations continue. 

“More people appear to be coming on board in taking a COVID-19 vaccine and that is very good. However, the Government has to do a better job of informing and explaining what Jamaicans are putting into their bodies. We all watch TV and read the news and there are evident problems with this AstraZeneca vaccine which is what is being given to our people yet the Government says go on and take it.

“If America and the richer parts of Europe are worried, what do they know that we don’t and why are we so confident in the efficacy of this vaccine? Do we have better scientists in Jamaica than they do in the U.S. and Europe? We need to think about this and make sure that this vaccine is on the level,” said Brian Robinson, a Jamaican pharmacist in Staten Island, New York.

The NIAID, in light of the growing concerns about AstraZeneca, said: “We urge the company to work with the Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) to review the efficacy data and ensure the most accurate up-to-date efficacy data be made public as quickly as possible.”