It seems that the specter of the Corona virus and the consequences of its vaccines will not disappear despite the decline of the pandemic that has consumed most of the world’s population, as the company “AstraZeneca” acknowledged for the first time that its vaccine against the Corona virus can cause rare side effects, in a clear shift that may open doors to obtaining legal compensation in the millions. British pounds, according to what was reported by the British newspaper The Guardian and reported by several media outlets.
The pharmaceutical company is currently being sued in a class action lawsuit over allegations that its vaccine, developed with the University of Oxford, caused death and serious injury in dozens of cases.
Lawyers stated that the vaccine produced side effects that had a devastating impact on a small number of families, and the first victim, Jimmy Scott, a father of two children, filed the first lawsuit, who suffered a permanent brain injury after suffering a blood clot and a cerebral hemorrhage that prevented him from working after obtaining the vaccine. The vaccine in April 2021. The hospital called his wife three times to tell her that her husband was going to die.
Corona vaccine (iStock)
AstraZeneca disputes the claims but accepted, in a legal document it submitted to the High Court in February, that its coronavirus vaccine “can, in very rare cases, cause TTS”.
TTS, which stands for thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, causes people to develop blood clots and have low platelet counts.
51 lawsuits were filed before the Supreme Court, from families demanding compensation estimated at up to 100 million pounds sterling.
In a response letter sent in May 2023, AstraZeneca told Mr. Scott’s lawyers: “We do not accept that the TTS was caused by the vaccine.” The lawyers argue that the AstraZeneca Oxford vaccine is “flawed” and that its effectiveness is “largely exaggerated,” which AstraZeneca denies. Hardly.
Scientists first identified a link between the vaccine and a new disease called vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT) as early as March 2021, shortly after the COVID-19 vaccine rollout began.
The claimants’ lawyers argued that VITT is a subset of TTS, although AstraZeneca does not appear to recognize this term or accept that it is caused by its vaccine.
“The medical world has long acknowledged that VITT was caused by the vaccine,” Kate Scott, Mr Scott’s wife, told the British newspaper The Telegraph. Only AstraZeneca has questioned whether Jamie’s condition was caused by the vaccine.
She added, “This acceptance took three years. It is progress, but we would like to see more from them and from the government. It is time for things to move more quickly.”
She continued: “I hope that their acceptance means that we will be able to resolve this issue sooner rather than later. We need an apology and fair compensation for our family and the other families who were affected. We have the truth on our side, and we will not give up.”
Corona vaccine
Destructive blood clots
Sarah Moore, a partner at law firm Leigh Day, which is bringing the legal claims, said: “It took AstraZeneca a year to formally acknowledge that its vaccine could cause devastating blood clots, when that fact was widely accepted by clinicians.”
The company said in a statement: “Our sympathies are with anyone who has lost loved ones or reported health problems… Patient safety is our top priority, and regulatory authorities have clear and strict standards to ensure the safe use of all medicines, including vaccines.”
She went on to say: “Through the body of evidence in clinical trials and real-world data, the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine has been consistently shown to have an acceptable safety profile, and regulators around the world consistently state that the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks of very rare potential side effects.”
Independent studies show that the AstraZeneca vaccine was incredibly effective in tackling the pandemic, saving the lives of more than six million people globally in the first year of its introduction.
The World Health Organization said the vaccine was “safe and effective for all individuals aged 18 and over” and that the adverse event that prompted the legal action was “extremely rare”.
The risk of AstraZeneca outweighs the harm of Covid
In the months since the drug was introduced, scientists identified potentially serious side effects of the vaccine and it was then recommended that an alternative vaccine be given to under-40s because the risk of the AstraZeneca vaccine outweighed the harm posed by Covid.
Lawyers representing the families suing the drug company say the vaccine was not as safe as individuals have a right to expect. They are suing the company, based in Cambridge, under the Consumer Protection Act 1987.
Mr. Scott’s lawyers argued that he suffered “personal injuries and consequential losses resulting from his development of immune thrombocytopenic thrombosis (VITT) as a result of his vaccination on April 23, 2021, with the AstraZeneca vaccine.”
Percentages of those affected
Official figures from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) show that at least 81 deaths in the UK are suspected to be linked to the adverse reaction that caused blood clots in people who also had low platelets.
Overall, nearly one in five people with the condition died as a result, according to MHRA figures. The Government is running its own vaccine compensation scheme, but victims claim £120,000 is not enough.
Figures obtained under a freedom of information request show that of 163 batches made by the government by February this year, at least 158 went to recipients of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The Vaccine Damage Payment System grants compensation to those who have been injured by vaccines or to their relatives. AstraZeneca has previously indicated in court papers that the claims against the company are “confused” and “wrong in law.” In the defense file, the pharmaceutical and vaccine company said that the benefit and risk profile of the vaccine was and remains positive.
AstraZeneca is the second largest listed company in the UK, with a market capitalization of more than £170 billion. Its chief executive, Sir Pascal Soriot, is the highest-paid director among FTSE 100 companies, with earnings of nearly £19m.
The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index, also called the FTSE 100 Index, is a stock market index of 100 large, highly capitalized companies listed on the London Stock Exchange.
