More than 680,000 doses stored untouched in German vaccination centers: Hardly anyone wants the AstraZeneca vaccine
- The effectiveness of the vaccine from the company AstraZeneca is considered controversial. In Germany, the vaccine is therefore only to be given to people under 65.
- However, the federal states have been very reluctant so far. So far, the vaccine remains in the warehouses and is largely not touched. According to Business Insider's calculations, only 7 percent of the nearly 737,000 doses of vaccine have been administered since February 7.
- Business Insider's research shows: Vaccinators, doctors, and even government agencies are confused over the controversial efficacy.
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The vaccine from the British company AstraZeneca is the drug on which Germany placed high hopes early on. Months ago, for example, North Rhine-Westphalia became one of the first states to design all processes around the vaccines from Biotech and AstraZeneca in its statewide vaccination strategy.
But then came the first reports that there were irregularities in AstraZeneca's studies and that the drug was not as effective as hoped, especially in older people over 65. While the European Medicines Agency nevertheless approved the drug for all age groups, in Germany it is to be used only for people under 65. But either way, doubts about the drug remain.
And so it turns out that the states prefer to leave the drug in storage so far. Since February 7, just about 50,000 of the 736,800 doses delivered so far have been vaccinated nationwide. That is not even every tenth dose. And there would be no need for restrictions since a further 1.8 million doses are to be delivered by the end of February.
In Brandenburg, stocks have not even been touched so far. However, a spokesperson assures Business Insider that AstraZeneca vaccinations will start on Wednesday. At the beginning of the week, there had been 500 interested parties - but how many of them have made appointments is an open question.
According to the Federal Ministry of Health, there is a great deal of uncertainty among those willing to be vaccinated and among doctors as to whether the vaccine is really effective. Vaccination appointments would therefore be canceled "en masse". A spokeswoman for the Saarland Health Ministry confirms for her state: "We are aware of cases where people refuse the vaccination offer with AstraZeneca". The appointments would then be given to other people, as people nationwide cannot currently choose which agent they are vaccinated with.
The head of a vaccination center in a German metropolis with millions of inhabitants also tells Business Insider that people are reluctant to use the vaccine because of skepticism about its effectiveness. Even the authorities are so skeptical that invitations to vaccinate have sometimes deliberately not yet been sent to people under 65, even though doses could be vaccinated. Instead, the focus continues to be on the very elderly.
But is this skepticism really justified? According to recent studies, AstraZeneca has an efficacy of 70 percent, just under 20 percent less than the agents from Moderna and Biotech. But the annual flu shots have similar efficacy. And, while the vaccine is not as effective against the highly contagious South Africa mutation. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) most recently stated that there is no evidence that the vaccine does not protect against severe courses of covid-19.
The reason that the drug is not being used for the very elderly in Germany is that the number of study participants in the elderly group was very small, casting doubt on its validity. In the meantime, however, new studies have been announced, but their results are still awaited. Then there will certainly be more reliable figures.
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