COVID-19-vaccination: AstraZeneca vaccine

AstraZeneca’s vaccine is efficacious in adults and medical risk groups. It is not yet possible to calculate the vaccine’s efficacy in individuals aged 55 and above, due to this age group’s limited participation in the vaccine trials (phase 3). However, the vaccine does induce an immune response in older adults, comparable to that seen in 18 to 55-year-olds. Accordingly, the Council assumes that the vaccine is also efficacious in this group. The immune system becomes less effective with advancing age, so the Council considers the vaccine to be suitable for individuals below the age of 65. The Council recommends that the vaccine should be used in older adults below the age of 65. This is because, at the present time, vaccinating this group will deliver the greatest health benefits. The Council also recommends that medical risk groups be vaccinated, depending on their risk of severe morbidity and mortality from COVID-19.