Speaking to the media at the sidelines of the COVID-19 Vaccination and Child Health Promotion Week/African Vaccination Week Campaign in various locations within the Ga East Municipality in Accra, Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr. Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, provided clarity on the matter.
Dr. Kuma-Aboagye said that the withdrawal was not driven by medical concerns but rather by commercial considerations.
“They are withdrawing for commercial reasons in the sense that there are superior vaccines in the market.”
“And so if you are in a market and you will not be able to compete why produce something when others will go for some other brand,” he said.
Explaining the rationale behind the withdrawal, the company stated that surplus availability of updated vaccines in the wake of the pandemic prompted the decision.
Following an announcement by the manufacturers of AstraZeneca vaccines regarding a worldwide recall, the pharmaceutical giant acknowledged the presence of a rare adverse effect called Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS).
TTS is characterized by the formation of blood clots that can obstruct veins or arteries, leading to symptoms such as unilateral leg pain and swelling, chest discomfort, or numbness on one side of the body. Complications like strokes or heart attacks associated with thrombosis can have fatal consequences.
Over the past week, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has reported 31 new cases of COVID-19 within the country. Dr. Kwame Amponsah-Achiano, the Programs Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunization at the Ghana Health Service, clarified that these cases are not severe.