Because of lack of demand
Astrazeneca withdraws corona vaccine from the market
May 8, 2024, 12:24 p.m
Listen to article
This audio version was artificially generated. More info | Send feedback
For a long time, the Astrazeneca vaccine was the problem child among vaccines. First because of blood clots, later because of lack of demand. Now the manufacturer is pulling the emergency brake and taking its product off the market.
The British pharmaceutical company Astrazeneca is withdrawing its corona vaccine from the market for economic reasons. There is now a surplus of vaccines against the coronavirus and this has led to a decline in demand for the drug Vaxzevria, the company said. The vaccine will therefore “no longer be manufactured or delivered”. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) had previously announced on its website that the marketing authorization for the drug had been withdrawn at the request of the manufacturer.
Astrazeneca was one of the first manufacturers to bring a corona vaccine onto the market. This is a type of vaccine based on vector viruses that has previously been approved against other diseases. A number of vaccines now exist, particularly the mRNA vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer has been successful.
Very rare cases of blood clots after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine have led people to turn to other vaccines in recent years. After the strict pandemic rules were lifted worldwide, demand for the AstraZeneca vaccine fell significantly again. According to informed sources, there have been no sales for “some time.”
Astrazeneca wants to “close this chapter”
According to its own statements, the British company has already started taking the drug off the market in Europe, the Middle East and the Arab region. The company wants to work with other authorities to initiate the withdrawal of marketing authorization in places where commercial demand for Vaxzevria is no longer expected in the future.
At the same time, the company was “incredibly proud” of having contributed to combating the corona pandemic and saving lives. Over three billion vaccine doses were delivered worldwide during the pandemic. But now Astrazeneca wants to “close this chapter”.