PAHO: Venezuela, Haiti reject AstraZeneca vaccines

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) on Wednesday said that Haiti and Venezuela have rejected the AstraZeneca vaccines provided through the COVAX program, and in the case of Haiti, those doses could be given to another country.

Venezuela has said it stands by its decision to not authorize the use of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine in the country.

"There isn't a specific vaccine request (from Venezuela). However, it's the vaccine (AstraZeneca) that is available the soonest possible," said Ciro Ugarte, PAHO's Director of Health Emergencies during a media briefing.

In the case of Haiti, Dr. Jarbas Barbosa, PAHO's Assistant Director, said the Caribbean nation is part of the countries that would receive COVID-19 vaccines for free through the COVAX scheme.

Dr. Barbosa said they have been working with Haiti to ensure there's a vaccination plan as part of the condition to receive COVAX vaccines, but the government has informed them they would not receive the AstraZeneca vaccines.

"There's not a possibility to have an option for another vaccine in...countries that are supported (referring to countries that would receive free vaccines as part of the COVAX program)," he said. "If the country confirms that they will not receive the vaccines, what happens is that those doses that are already reserved for Haiti will be assigned to other participating countries."

He said they are currently working with Haiti to provide them with safety data as well as recommendations and recommendations from OMS, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), so Haiti can make a decision to receive the vaccines.

Haiti currently doesn't have a single vaccine to offer its more than 11 million people over a year after the pandemic began, raising concerns among health experts that the well-being of Haitians is being pushed aside as violence and political instability across the country deepen.

Haiti's lack of vaccines comes as it reports more than 12,800 cases and more than 250 deaths, numbers that experts believe are underreported.

While Venezuela has received doses of the Russian Sputnik-V COVID-19 vaccine, it has grappled with an increase in virus cases which has brought a record number of COVID-19 patients into hospitals.

The government has partially attributed the rise to a virus variant which scientists believe originated in neighboring Brazil and is more infectious.

According to recent figures from Johns Hopkins University data, Venezuela has reported more than 176,900 infections and 1,815 deaths.