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COPENHAGEN, May 31 (Reuters) - Denmark's government on
Monday asked the country's health authorities to reconsider a
decision to exclude Johnson & Johnson's and
AstraZeneca's COVID-19 shots from its vaccination
programme.
The move was prompted by a two-week delay in the Danish
vaccination programme to September due to delivery of fewer
Moderna and CureVac vaccines than expected, Health
Minister Magnus Heunicke said.
Denmark excluded the J&J and AstraZeneca vaccines over a
potential link to a rare but serious form of blood clot.
"We are now further into the epidemic, and the vaccines from
Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca have now been in use in Europe
for some time, Heunicke said.
"There is a larger data base worldwide to assess the effect
and side effects of the vaccines," he said.
The health authority found in early May that the benefits of
using the COVID-19 vaccines did not outweigh the risk of causing
the possible adverse effect in those who receive the vaccine.
Excluding the J&J vaccine, which accounts for around a third
of Denmark's total contracted supplies of COVID-19 shots,
delayed the country's vaccination calendar by up to four weeks,
the health authority said.
Denmark had vaccinated 21% of its population as of Monday.
(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen; editing by David Evans
and Giles Elgood)
