CSL says its AstraZeneca vaccine still needed to protect Australians
CSL is committed to producing 50m doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine for the government despite a switch to Pfizer for the under-50s.
Australia’s biggest health company, CSL, says it “remains committed” to fulfilling its contract with the federal government to produce 50 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, despite the federal government warning Australians under 50 that Pfizer’s jab was the better option.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday night announced a “major recalibration” to the nation’s coronavirus vaccine program, with the government forced to rely on the imported Pfizer vaccine or the yet-to-be approved Novavax vaccine to inoculate those under 50.
While the move has cast doubt on whether the whole population will be vaccinated against COVID-19 by October, CSL has declared it is business as usual at its two Melbourne factories producing the AstraZeneca vaccine.
A CSL spokeswoman said following Mr Morrison’s announcement that the locally-produced AstraZeneca vaccine “remains critical for the protection of our most vulnerable populations”.
“CSL remains committed to meeting its contracted arrangements with the Australian government and AstraZeneca for locally-produced AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines,” a CSL spokeswoman said late on Thursday night.
“We will continue our focused and important efforts to manufacture this vaccine which remains critical for the protection of our most vulnerable populations.
“We are proud of our unique role in Australia as the only onshore manufacturer that can produce this vaccine and remain dedicated to our ongoing contribution towards this effort.”
CSL shares closed down 1 per cent, or $2.54 on Friday, at $263.4 each, against a flat benchmark index.
The vaccine switch for those under 50 is in response to the European Medicines Agency, which found a link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and a rare blood-clotting syndrome.
This has prompted the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation to recommend the Pfizer vaccine be given preference over the AstraZeneca jab for those aged under 50.
The CSL-produced doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, known as AZD1222, was expected to form the bulk of the Morrison government’s $3.3bn COVID-19 immunisation program.
The company, the biggest on the ASX, received $300m from the federal government to retool and produce 50 million doses of the AstraZeneca formulation as well as the locally developed University of Queensland vaccine, which failed in December.
CSL began producing the AstraZeneca vaccine under licence in November and has since been working around the clock to fulfil its contractual obligations with the federal government. Two weeks ago it released 830,000 doses of the AstraZeneca jab, ahead of initial scheduling.
“There are a further 2.5 million doses in cold storage, undergoing the final stages of testing, approval and release, which will be distributed in the coming weeks,” CSL said in a statement when it released the first doses.
“The manufacturing process is ongoing and CSL expects to release an average of a million doses a week over the course of the campaign, subject to regulatory approvals.”
Mr Morrison said the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation had issued the new advisory “out of an abundance of caution” in light of the lower risks of becoming seriously ill and dying from COVID-19 in the younger age groups and given the low incidence of COVID-19 in Australia.
“We’ve been taking the necessary precautions based on the best possible medical advice,” Mr Morrison said.
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