Germany Says Oxford Vaccine Should Only Be Given to Those Under 65

The vaccine committee in Germany has recommended that the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine should only be given to those under the age of 65, reported Economic Times.

The development has caused worry in India where Covishield - the same vaccine being made here by Serum Institute of India - has been approved for all over 18 without an upper age limit.

Germany’s Standing Vaccine Commission has cited “insufficient data currently available to ascertain how effective the vaccination is above 65 years”, according to a report in Financial Times.

Speaking of India, a health expert told ET,

“We want to know if the subject expert committee (SEC) under the drug regulator looked at the data in various age groups. Have they seen it’s appropriate to use the vaccine in people above 65?”

Responding to a query, AstraZeneca said, “Reports that the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine efficacy is low in adults over 65 years is not an accurate reflection of the totality of the data.”

However, CEO Pascal Soirot had said previously that it was fine if some countries, out of caution, use its vaccine for the younger group.

“The most recent Lancet publication has demonstrated that older adults showed strong immune responses to the vaccine, with 100% of older adults generating spike-specific antibodies after the second dose,” the company said.

(With inputs from Economic Times)