Minister urges Greeks not to cancel jab appointments over AstraZeneca concerns

Deputy Health Minister Vassilis Kontozamanis on Tuesday urged Greeks not to cancel their Covid-19 vaccination appointments over concerns that the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab may be associated with the development of thrombosis and thrombocytopenia.

“It is very important that our fellow citizens do not cancel their vaccination, because the vaccination program is delayed and this of course will have an impact on the pandemic,” the minister said after chairing a meeting with hospital governors in Thessaloniki.

Kontozamanis reiterated that greek health authorities are following closely the directions given by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) which has licensed the AstraZeneca vaccine. 

“There is no cause for concern and whatever incidents have occurred, we must first connect them to the vaccine and make decisions accordingly,” he added. 

The EU’s Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said on Tuesday that the EMA’s pharmacovigilance assessment of the AstraZeneca vaccine is expected late Wednesday.