AstraZeneca delivered 29.8mn Covid vax doses to EU

Brussels, April 1 : AstraZeneca has delivered 29.8 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine to European Union (EU) member states in the first quarter (Q1) of 2021, just "a few doses away" from the promised 30 million, a European Commission spokesperson said.

EU member states have received 67.5 million doses from BioNTech-Pfizer and 9.8 million doses from Moderna, Xinhua news agency quoted European Commission deputy chief spokesperson Dana Spinant as saying on Wednesday.These numbers are in line with those announced by European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen on March 25, with 30 million doses promised by AstraZeneca, 60 million doses by BioNTech-Pfizer, and 10 million doses by Moderna.

AstraZenecas performance comes as a surprise after delays in production and deliveries from the British-Swedish vaccine manufacturer, which triggered vaccine export control by the EU.The companys vaccine is also under scrutiny as a few cases of blood clots subsequent to their vaccines injection were discovered.However, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has deemed that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh its risks.

"A causal link with the vaccine is not proven, but is possible and further analysis is continuing," the EMA said in a statement on Wednesday.