Georgian Health Minister Tikaradze to receive AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine live on TV
Ekaterine Tikaradze will receive her AstraZeneca vaccine next week. Photo: EU Medicines Agency/Twitter
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Georgian Health Minister Ekaterine Tikaradze has announced that she will receive the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine live on TV to contribute to a campaign about raising awareness about the importance of inoculation.
Tikaradze told Rustavi 2 media outlet yesterday that she was supposed to receive another vaccine which is currently less popular among the population. However, following the recent death of a 27-year-old nurse, it is important to convince people in the safety of vaccination.
It is important for the population to see how we receive the vaccine in public, including AstraZeneca”, Tikaradze told Rustavi 2.
Georgia started vaccination on March 15 after the country received the first 43,200 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Unfortunately, a 27-year-old Georgian nurse Megi Bakradze who went into anaphylactic shock after receiving the vaccine has died.
Georgia decided to continue using the AstraZeneca vaccine after the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) safety committee concluded that the benefits of the vaccine in combating Covid-19 ‘continue to outweigh the risk of side effects’.
EMA’s safety committee (PRAC) concludes that the benefits of the #COVID19Vaccine AstraZeneca still outweigh its risks despite possible link to rare blood clots associated with low levels of blood platelets.
— EU Medicines Agency (@EMA_News) March 18, 2021
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However, following Bakradze’s death yesterday, Georgian health officials have announced that vaccination will continue only in clinics with intensive care units (ICUs).