South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun is scheduled to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine jab in order to dispel safety concerns about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) inoculation from the British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant.
During a regular weekly news conference on Thursday, Chung said he planned to receive a shot on Friday at a local public health centre to help increase the public’s participation in the government’s public Coronavirus vaccination programme that began in February.
Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol, also plans to receive a shot on Friday as well.
“I decided to receive a shot so as to reassure the public that receiving a vaccination is beneficial and there is no danger.
“I hope it can contribute to increasing the rate of vaccination,’’ Chung said.
South Korea had begun administering AstraZeneca vaccines for those aged 65 and above on Tuesday following a delay attributable to concerns about its safety.
Local health authorities stated the previous day that they have found no evidence suggesting a correlation between the vaccine and reports of blood clots.
On Tuesday, President Moon Jae-in received his first dose of AstraZeneca’s vaccine ahead of a planned trip to Britain to attend a Group of Seven (G-7) summit.
The AstraZeneca vaccine requires two shots with an interval of eight to 12 weeks. (Yonhap/NAN)
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