AstraZeneca, a British-Swedish pharmaceutical company, has announced its decision to halt the marketing of its Covid-19 vaccine, Vaxzevria, in the European Union starting tomorrow. The company made this move after submitting a withdrawal request to the European Commission on March 5.
The European Commission confirmed that they would withdraw the marketing authorization for the drug at AstraZeneca’s request due to a lack of demand and an oversupply of vaccines in the market. With numerous updated vaccines available for Covid-19 variants, there is now a surplus of doses on the market, leading to a decrease in demand for Vaxzevria.
AstraZeneca stated that it played an important role in combatting the pandemic, saving over 6.5 million lives and supplying more than 3 billion doses globally in its first year of use. The company emphasized that this decision was made strategically to respond to the changing landscape of the vaccine market.
Despite this decision, AstraZeneca acknowledges that Vaxzevria has had a significant impact on saving lives and supplying vaccines worldwide. The company thanked healthcare workers and governments for their support during its production and distribution efforts.
