AstraZeneca vaccine works in older people, UK says

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As European public health authorities struggle to convince people to take

AstraZenecaof

Covid-19 vaccine – and a large number of doses go unused – British scientists have come out with a study that could allay concerns about the vaccine.

In a statement released Monday, Public Health England, a UK government health authority, highlighted a real-world study conducted by its scientists on the effectiveness of the

AstraZeneca

(ticker: AZN) and

Pfizer

(PFE) vaccines. The study, which has not yet been peer reviewed, found that the AstraZeneca vaccine was between 60% and 73% effective in adults aged 70 and older.

“This adds to the growing evidence showing that vaccines help reduce infections and save lives,” Public Health England director of immunization Dr Mary Ramsay said in a statement. “While there is still a lot of data to follow, this is encouraging and we are increasingly convinced that vaccines are making a real difference.”

While the UK has recommended that all adults receive the AstraZeneca vaccine, and the European Union and the World Health Organization have done the same, limited evidence on its effectiveness in the elderly has led to more restricted recommendations in some countries. German authorities recommended at the end of January that the vaccine should not be given to adults over 65, and French authorities have done the same.

Now that reluctance seems to be fading. On Tuesday, the French government said people with pre-existing conditions, and those aged 65 to 75, could now receive the AstraZeneca vaccine – although people aged 75 and older are offered the

Pfizer

or Moderna vaccine, according to a BBC report.

The BBC reported earlier this week that German health authorities are under pressure to recommend the AstraZeneca vaccine for the elderly in that country.

On Monday, the Canadian body that sets the vaccination guidelines advised against giving the AstraZeneca vaccine to adults over 65, after the country’s drug regulator cleared the drug on Friday.

The cautious approach has raised suspicion in Germany and France about the efficacy of the AstraZeneca vaccine. An AFP report released on Monday revealed that vaccine supplies are not being used in France and Germany, even as the French health minister received his dose live on television.

The Public Health England study used routine testing and vaccination data to estimate the effect of vaccination on Covid-19 cases in the elderly.

“This study provides the first concrete evidence of the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccine against symptomatic Covid-19 in the elderly in the UK,” the authors concluded. “The effect of a single dose of [AstraZeneca] the symptomatic disease vaccine was about 60-75% and there was again an additional protective effect against hospitalization, although it was too early to assess the effect and mortality.

The implications for the U.S. vaccine market are unclear, as the timeline for the potential vaccine authorization here is not yet defined. This is unlikely to happen this month.

Write to Josh Nathan-Kazis at [email protected]