BRUSSELS, March 14 (Reuters) – Demand for the COVID-19 vaccine produced by U.S. biotech agency Novavax (NVAX.O) has been underwhelming within the European Union’s foremost international locations within the early rollout, to this point undermining hopes that it might persuade vaccine sceptics to get a shot.
Over 85% of adults within the 27-country EU bloc have obtained at the least one dose and almost two-thirds of them have additionally had a booster, however tens of tens of millions stay unvaccinated.
The Novavax vaccine, the newest to obtain the EU regulators’ approval beneath the commerce identify of Nuvaxovid, was anticipated to influence some sceptics as a result of it’s based mostly on a extra standard expertise than the opposite 4 vaccines authorised to this point within the EU.
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However preliminary knowledge on Nuvaxovid’s rollout present that it has had a small influence on vaccination campaigns.
In Germany, the EU’s most populous nation and residential to greater than 10 million unvaccinated individuals, solely about 36,000 Novavax doses have been administered within the first two weeks because the begin of the rollout on Feb. 24, in line with knowledge from the Robert Koch Institute.
In March to this point on common almost 90,000 COVID vaccines have been administered each day in Germany, largely boosters. Solely 2% of them have been Novavax’s, regardless of over 2 million doses distributed to the nation. read more nL8N2V43QS
The same scenario is rising in Italy, the place lower than 12,000 Nuvaxovid doses have been administered within the first ten days of the rollout, which began on Feb. 28, with the supply of 1 million vaccines. In the identical interval, the nation injected over 70,000 COVID-19 vaccines a day, largely boosters.
Novavax mentioned its protein-based shot will play a task in driving vaccination amongst those that have been hesitant to get immunised and it has began an academic effort on vaccine decisions.
The arrival of the vaccine to this point into the area’s marketing campaign which began in late 2020 and amid the easing of restrictive measures have been among the many causes for the “disappointing efficiency,” former head of the EU’s medication company, Guido Rasi, mentioned.
“NO UPSURGE”
Knowledge from the European Heart for Illness prevention and Management (ECDC) present that boosters quantity to about two-thirds of all vaccinations in current weeks, with the (messenger) mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech remaining essentially the most used.
Nuvaxovid is used virtually solely as a primary dose for unvaccinated.
“The hope that the (Novavax) vaccine might persuade the undecided has been dashed. Sadly, there isn’t a upsurge within the variety of newly vaccinated individuals,” mentioned Nino Cartabellotta, who chairs the Gimbe Basis, a analysis group.
In France, solely about 1,200 individuals obtained the Novavax vaccine within the first eight days of March.
Demand for boosters was far greater, with greater than 15,500 of Pfizer’s third doses administered on March 8 alone, the final day for which knowledge is out there, knowledge from the French well being company confirmed.
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Reporting by Francesco Guarascio @fraguarascio in Brussels, Emilio Parodi in Milan and Ludwig Burger in Frankfurt; modifying by Josephine Mason and Louise Heavens
Our Requirements: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
