South African health inspectors on Sunday said they will not release Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines that may have been contaminated during production at a U.S. plant.
No decision on whether EU may seek new AZ, J&J contracts EU betting on mRNA vaccines, in talks for Pfizer mega-deal
BRUSSELS, April 21 (Reuters) - The European Union won’t take up an extra 300 million doses of AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines that it has secured as options under existing contracts, a senior EU official told Reuters.
The decision is the latest sign Brussels is looking to distance itself from AstraZeneca amid simmering tensions after the drugmaker slashed its delivery targets due to production problems.
It is also further evidence the bloc is sidelining vaccines that have been linked with a very rare, but potentially fatal side effect, and is confident current suppliers - led by Pfizer/BioNTech - will deliver enough doses to inoculate at least 70% of EU adults by the end of the summer.