Jung Eun-kyung: "The Public Can Receive the AstraZeneca Vaccine"

Jung Eun-kyung, Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, is giving a briefing on COVID-19 vaccination at the Disease Control Headquarters in Cheongju, Chungbuk, on the 24th of last month.
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Amid ongoing controversy surrounding the AstraZeneca (AZ) COVID-19 vaccine, Jung Eun-kyung, Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), emphasized on the 17th that it is safe to receive the AZ vaccine.

On the same day, during the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee plenary session, when asked about the safety of the AZ vaccine, Director Jung responded, "You can receive the AstraZeneca vaccine. All KDCA staff members are also getting vaccinated." She added, "We will continue to monitor its safety."

Recently, cases of blood clots (thrombosis) leading to death after receiving the AZ vaccine have been reported in Austria and other countries. In response, more than 20 countries including Germany, France, and Italy decided to temporarily suspend the use of certain manufacturing batches or the entire supply of the AZ vaccine as a precautionary measure.

However, the government stated that there is no basis to halt AZ vaccine administration and decided to proceed with vaccinations as originally planned, which raised safety concerns among citizens.

When asked whether the side effects of the AZ vaccine can be definitively identified as blood clots, Director Jung explained, "The evidence is not yet clear," adding, "According to health insurance data, approximately 17,000 people are diagnosed annually with pulmonary thromboembolism (a condition where blood clots block the pulmonary artery). It is a condition that occurs regularly even under normal circumstances."

Meanwhile, no adverse reaction cases involving blood clots after AZ vaccine administration have been reported domestically. There is one case under investigation where a death occurred after vaccination and blood clots were found during an autopsy.