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| Corona 19 vaccine jointly developed by British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and Oxford University © Reuters = News1 © News1 Photo reporter |
Unlike other vaccines, it is reported that the German government is planning to inoculate public officials such as teachers and soldiers with the AstraZeneca vaccine, which appears to be avoided by the public.
According to Reuters on the 23rd, in a situation where the supply of other vaccines such as Pfizer is slowing, the German government revised the vaccination rules so that the AstraZeneca vaccine was given priority. This is because schools and kindergartens began to reopen during the lockdown (blockade) measures implemented in November last year, and teachers’ vaccinations became urgent.
According to a government document, “children, adolescents, and their parents are particularly affected by the blockade,” and “teachers should be protected in different ways because children can have difficulty keeping social distancing.”
Meanwhile, German health minister Jens Sfan said he would distribute the AstraZeneca vaccine to police and military authorities. Accordingly, German Defense Minister Annegret Krampkarenbauer will select defense personnel to be vaccinated.
AstraZeneca vaccine has been shown to be inferior to Pfizer’s Moder or Pfizer vaccine, and European countries such as Germany are avoiding vaccination.
Recently, there have been reports that AstraZeneca vaccine has stronger side effects than other vaccines. However, the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI) explained that this side effect is consistent with what has been observed in clinical trials and is a normal immune response. German government leaders also stress that the vaccine is safe and effective.
According to the figures of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the German Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 187,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine were used out of 1.5 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine distributed nationwide as of the 21st. Because of the avoidance phenomenon, only about 12% of the total volume was used up.