The AstraZeneca Vaxzevria vaccine, also manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, was marketed in India as Covishield.
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AstraZeneca has initiated the worldwide withdrawal of its Covid-19 vaccine due to a “surplus of available updated vaccines” since the pandemic. According to a news agency, “As multiple, variant Covid-19 vaccines have since been developed there is a surplus of available updated vaccines,” the company said, adding that this had led to a decline in demand for Vaxzevria, which is no longer being manufactured or supplied.
Recently, UK-headquartered pharmaceutical giant admitted that in “very rare cases”, its Covid vaccine can cause a blood clot-related side-effect but the causal link is unknown.
The Daily Telegraph reported that in a legal document submitted to the High Court in London in February for a group action brought by 51 claimants, AstraZeneca admitted that the vaccine developed with the University of Oxford to protect against Covid-19 may cause Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) in “very rare cases”.
The AstraZeneca Vaxzevria vaccine, also manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, was marketed in India as Covishield.
Last week an appilcation was moved in Supreme Court seeking to issue direction to form a medical expert panel to examine Covishield vaccine side effects.
India’s Serum Institute faces lawsuit on Covishield vaccine over girl’s death
The plea was moved by advocate Vishal Tiwari, who also urged the court to issue directions to the Centre to establish a vaccine damage payment system for the citizens who became severely disabled as a result of a vaccination drive during the pandemic.
In the plea, advocate Vishal Tiwari sought direction to constitute a medical expert panel comprising medical experts from the All India Institute of Medical Science, Delhi headed by its director and supervised by the retired justice of the Supreme Court of India, to examine the Covishield vaccine side effects and its risk factors.
AstraZeneca admits rare blood clot risk from covid jabs, faces lawsuit in UK. More than 175 crore doses of Covishield have been administered in India, advocate Vishal Tiwari said.
Advocate Tiwari, in the application, said that after Covid-19, there has been an increase in the cases of death due to heart attacks and sudden collapse of persons.
Serum Institute of India (SII), which produces AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine under the brand name Covishield in India, is also facing a lawsuit.
The parents of Karunya, who passed away on July 2021 following the administration of the Covishield vaccination dose has decided to sue the SII.