On the verge of resuming the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, after a preventive interruption followed by several European countries, Portugal will send at the end of the list those who refuse to receive the immunizer from the pharmaceutical company.
Instead of receiving a dose produced by another manufacturer (Pfizer or Moderna, which are also used in the country), those who do not want the AstraZenenca vaccine will lose their place in the vaccination queue and will have to wait for another opportunity. .
According to healthcare professionals, the rejection of AstraZeneca doses has increased in recent weeks, after the controversial investigation into possible side effects after application.
“There have already been rejections [à vacina da AstraZeneca] before and now there should be more. But to refuse is impossible at the start. The guideline is this: the patient does not choose the vaccine. We cannot eliminate the person from the list, what we are saying is that we will have to wait, at the risk of not being vaccinated ”, declares the president of the National Association of Family Health Units, Diogo Urjais , quoted by the newspaper Público.
The coordinator of the working group on vaccination in Portugal, Vice-Admiral Henrique Gouveia e Melo, also stressed the impossibility of choosing the “brand” of the vaccine.
“The principle of the vaccination process is not to choose the vaccine, because the approved vaccines are just as good and safe,” he said.
After the announcement that the AstraZeneca vaccine was considered safe and effective by the EMA (European Medicines Agency), the Portuguese government held, on Thursday (19), a joint press conference between different spheres of health to announce the return of the vaccine national immunization plan.
Prime Minister António Costa had already come out publicly in defense of the vaccine, announcing that he himself had already received the first dose of AstraZeneca.
“All the scientific evidence shows that the vaccine is safe and effective. I say this with the peace of mind of being vaccinated and having already taken the first dose of AstraZeneca, ”he said.
“I look forward to my second dose in May,” added the Prime Minister.
Until Thursday (18), Portugal, which has about 10 million inhabitants, has already applied 1,235,136 doses of vaccines against Covid-19. About 8.6% of Portuguese have already received the first dose and 3.6% have already completed the immunization schedule.