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The vaccine that has already been ordered may no longer be needed in Switzerland because, according to the plan, large numbers of other highly effective vaccines will be available from May.
Switzerland has ordered 5.3 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine that may not be necessary.
Photo: Alessandra Tarantino (Keystone)
The British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca’s vaccine is no longer included in the Swiss army’s delivery schedule. For this, the deliveries of Novavax and Curevac have already arrived, although these two companies have not even submitted applications for approval. This is reported by the “NZZ am Sonntag”. In Switzerland, the approval of the AstraZeneca vaccine has been delayed because the Swiss medical authority requests additional data.
“In the current situation, Switzerland is not dependent on AstraZeneca cans,” said Nora Kronig, deputy director of the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG). According to planning, large numbers of four highly effective mRNA vaccines should be available from May onwards. Kronig confirms that it is being considered to sell the AstraZeneca vaccine: “There are considerations for transmitting the substance,” he says. But it is not yet clear what will happen to him. Switzerland has ordered 5.3 million doses of vaccines from AstraZeneca. Kronig also puts the aforementioned delivery schedule into perspective: it is “working assumptions that fluctuate.”
The withdrawal of the contract will be checked if necessary.
According to Kronig, terminating the purchase contract with AstraZeneca is currently not a problem. However, if the active ingredient turns out to be of little use, a cancellation of the contract will be “checked if necessary”. In case of insufficient effectiveness, the clauses allow the termination of the contract.
The AstraZeneca vaccine has been criticized from various quarters for some time. It was recommended not to give it to people over 65 years because the efficacy in this age group is not yet sufficiently proven. In addition, vaccination with the AstraZeneca substance should generally be somewhat less effective than that of Moderna or Biontech / Pfizer substances. And South Africa even halted a planned vaccination campaign in early February, as the AstraZeneca vaccine, according to the first results of a study, offers only very limited protection against the South African mutation of the coronavirus. In Germany there was occasional criticism due to the alleged side effects, and some high-risk patients rejected AstraZeneca.
Is the vaccine better than its reputation?
In recent days, however, there have also been a growing number of positive reports. Well-known German virologist Christian Drosten emphasized that the active ingredient in AstraZeneca was better than its reputation: “When I look at the public discussion in Germany, a lot has been misunderstood.” And a new study from the University of Oxford suggests that AstraZeneca is more effective if the second dose of vaccine is given after three months.
