- The Covid-19 vaccine triggered blood clots in a very small number of people
Drugs giant AstraZeneca faces a landmark High Court battle over accusations that some doses of its Covid-19 vaccine were ‘defective’ and claims of its efficacy were ‘vastly overstated’.
Two test cases are expected before the court after recipients developed a rare condition following the rollout of the jab in 2021.
The vaccine, developed in partnership with Oxford University, was heralded for its role helping the UK recover from Covid, with more than 150million doses administered to date. Some six million lives were saved by the jab, studies show.
But it triggered blood clots in a very small number of people – with some leading to fatal complications. The condition is known as known as vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT).
IT engineer Jamie Scott is now bringing the court action after suffering a brain haemorrhage the day after his first AstraZeneca jab, leaving him with permanent brain damage.
His wife Kate last year told The Mail on Sunday how the father-of-two, from Warwickshire, was left partially blind and struggles with daily tasks – requiring physiotherapy to help regain movement.
Charity worker Mrs Scott said: ‘It is a miracle that Jamie is still with us. I called the hospital three times to say goodbye. The doctors have said he may never work again.’
Currently, families are entitled to a £120,000 payout if a loved one dies or is left significantly disabled as a result of a Government-recommended jab. But experts say the system is outdated, prompting the court action.
Mrs Scott added: ‘Even if we do get the £120,000 payment, it’s not enough to keep us going for ever. And it’s insulting, considering what Jamie has been through.’
A second claim is reportedly being brought by the widower and two children of Alpa Tailor, 35, who died after having the jab.
If successful, it could pave the way for similar claims, thought to be in the region of £1million each.
Mr Scott’s lawyers told the Daily Telegraph they will argue that he suffered ‘personal injuries’, with an allegation that the jab was ‘defective’ and the efficacy of the vaccine had been misleading.
AstraZeneca said: ‘From the body of evidence in clinical trials and real-world data, the vaccine has continuously been shown to have an acceptable safety profile and regulators around the world consistently state that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of extremely rare potential side-effects.’
Millions of Brits rolled up their sleeves when called to get the vaccine in the hope of protecting themselves, vulnerable loved ones and society as a whole from the virus as it swept the country.
In comparison to rival vaccines which used pioneering mRNA technology, AstraZeneca’s more traditional shot was cheaper and easier to store.
It uses a weakened version of an adenovirus — a pathogen which causes a common cold in chimpanzees. This is genetically modified to be incapable of making humans sick.
It carries genetic material from SARS-CoV-2, the pathogen that causes Covid. This teaches the body’s immune system how to fight the real virus.
AstraZeneca’s vaccine, given as two doses taken up to 12 weeks apart, was praised as a being a game-changer during the pandemic.
Data suggested two doses of the AstraZeneca jab offered about 70 per cent protection against becoming ill, which meant developing any symptoms of Covid, as opposed to being hospitalised by it.
Other studies calculated that a single dose reduced the likelihood of hospitalisation by up to 94 per cent.
Officials in Britain approved it for public use on December 30, 2020, just weeks after the data was published.
The first doses were given on January 4, 2021, less than a month after the Pfizer vaccine. When the AstraZeneca jab was approved, then-health secretary Matt Hancock said it was a ‘moment to celebrate British innovation’.
But the historic roll-out was marred after reports of a rare but dangerous, side-effect causing potentially deadly blood clots.
Trials weren’t big enough to spot Vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia, or VITT, which can cause blood clots and has been linked to dozens of deaths and more injuries.
Opening the door for millions more Brits to get the jab, as the UK did during the first few months of 2021, effectively outed VITT. Officials spotted a small, yet significant, trend that allowed them to raise the alarm in the first week of April 2020.
The use of the vaccine was then restricted to older age groups and the jab is now no longer used in booster campaigns.
Government estimates suggest blood clots occur from taking AstraZeneca’s jab in up to one in 10,000 people.
For VITT specifically, the risk is thought to be greatest to the under-50s, with one in 50,000 affected. In over-50s, officials believe the risk is about one in 100,000.
Deaths from VITT were unexpected, but this does not necessarily mean AstraZeneca’s jab was faulty.
Millions of Brits had the life-saving jab without suffering any complications.
Robert Johnson is a UK-based business writer specializing in finance and entrepreneurship. With an eye for market trends and a keen interest in the corporate world, he offers readers valuable insights into business developments.
