(Reuters) – Canada will update its guidelines on AstraZeneca Plc’s COVID-19 vaccine to recommend that it be administered to people aged 65 years and older, CBC News reported on Monday, citing documents and sources with direct knowledge of the guidelines.
The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) had earlier in the month advised against giving the vaccine to people in that age group.
The report said the NACI plans to update its guidelines on the vaccine on Tuesday, with the decision based on emerging real-world data from other countries on the vaccine’s efficacy in people over 65 years of age.
The committee’s recommendations also state that vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc and Moderna Inc will still be prioritized for older age groups, according to the report. (https://bit.ly/3cAzB7h)
AstraZeneca and the Public Health Agency of Canada, to whom the NACI makes recommendations, did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Health Canada in February authorized the AstraZeneca vaccine for people aged 18 and older.
Germany, France and Italy said on Monday they would suspend AstraZeneca COVID-19 shots after several countries reported possible serious side-effects, but the World Health Organization said there was no proven link and people should not panic.
(Reporting by Amruta Khandekar; Editing by Aditya Soni)
