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(Adds details on Mexico vaccine supply)
By Daina Beth Solomon
MEXICO CITY, April 20 (Reuters) - Mexican President Andres
Manuel Lopez Obrador received the AstraZeneca shot against
COVID-19 on Tuesday, urging trust in vaccines after several
countries limited the use of AstraZeneca due to suspected links
to rare blood clots.
Lopez Obrador, 67, has said the benefits of getting
inoculated outweighed the risks of the low-cost shot, which is a
core pillar of Mexico's vaccination strategy.
Ahead of rolling up his sleeve for the shot at the end of
his regular daily news conference, Lopez Obrador said he wanted
to encourage all older adults to also get their shots to be
protected from the coronavirus.
"We're sure there is no risk, no danger, that there are no
serious side effects," he said, without specifically naming
AstraZeneca.
He added that his government is tracking vaccine studies
being carried out worldwide.
Lopez Obrador said he would sit for 20 minutes after
receiving the jab, as recommended by a healthcare worker who
administered the shot to the president on live television and
social media.
"It didn't hurt," Lopez Obrador said. "Right now I'm feeling
very good."
Mexico's health regulator said earlier this month that it
did not plan to limit the use of the two-shot vaccine developed
by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, but was looking into
information from Britain's vaccine advisory committee.
The committee has said an alternative to AstraZeneca should
be given to people under 30 where possible.
Mexico began vaccinations late last year and has so far
fully inoculated nearly 4 million people, most of whom are
adults over 60, out of a total population of 126 million.
Officials plan to soon roll out vaccinations for adults over
50 and teachers, just as infection rates in 10 states start to
trend higher following Easter week celebrations.
Mexico as of February had agreed to buy 77.4 million
AstraZeneca doses, making the drugmaker its top vaccine
provider. It will also receive AstraZeneca shots through the
COVAX vaccine-sharing program, which will supply a total of 51.5
million doses from various manufacturers.
Additionally, Mexico has agreed to bottle AstraZeneca shots
using vaccine material produced in Argentina, with an initial
supply of 150 million doses to be distributed in Latin America.
A Mexican official said in March that the first doses were
expected to be shipped the first week of May.
(Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon
Editing by Alistair Bell)
