New controversy over vaccines! Politicians on target: ‘You’ve got blood on your hands’
Professor Sir John Bell, an Oxford scientist who worked on the AstraZeneca vaccine, said in a publication that by targeting some scientists and politicians, “They have damaged the reputation of the vaccine in a way that resonates with the rest of the world. They have the blood of thousands of people who died on their hands.””
Professor Sir John Bell, an Oxford scientist who worked on the AstraZeneca vaccine, claimed scientists and politicians had damaged the vaccine’s reputation, possibly causing hundreds of thousands of deaths.
‘HE’S GOT BLOOD ON HIS HANDS’
“They have blood on their hands,” Bell said in a broadcast, noting that critical comments by leaders such as French President Emmanuel Macron undermined global confidence in the vaccine.
Bell continued.
“The bad behavior of scientists and politicians probably killed hundreds of thousands of people. They damaged the vaccine’s reputation in a way that resonated with the rest of the world. I don’t think they can be proud of what they’ve done.”
TARGETING MACRON AND MERKEL
French President Macron called AstraZeneca ‘semi-ineffective’ at the time of the vaccine’s rollout and claimed the UK was rushing approval. Macron’s remarks were described as ‘Brexit pain’ in the UK.
Angela Merkel, who was German Chancellor at the time, said the vaccine would not be used because of doubts about the effectiveness of the vaccine in people over the age of 65.
DISCONTINUED IN MANY COUNTRIES
The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine has always been the focus of criticism and controversy during the pandemic. Deaths linked to blood clots, which are very rare after the vaccine was introduced in the United Kingdom, have sparked a debate about drug reliability.
In the United Kingdom, the government decided that alternatives should be offered for under-40s, while countries such as Germany, France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, the Republic of Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Bulgaria, Iceland and Thailand also stopped using vaccines due to fears linked to blood clots.
The intensity of the bans has also led to the vaccine being restricted in developing countries such as Congo and Thailand. Most countries eventually re-approved AstraZeneca, but the controversy led many to reject the vaccine.
NOT PREFERRED IN CALENDAR DOSES
The vaccine later failed to play a significant role in the UK’s ‘supplementary dose’ campaign. Of the more than 37 million supplement doses across the country, only 48,000 were AstraZeneca, the BBC said.
