Marrakech – Minister of Health and Social Protection Khalid Ait Taleb has disclosed that a total of 54,423 Moroccans have experienced side effects related to the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
The minister made the revelation on Monday as he responded to a written question from Justice and Development Parliamentary Group member Naima Elfathaoui, who raised concerns about vaccine-related injuries and deaths.
Of the 8,866,853 AstraZeneca doses Morocco administered during its vaccination campaign, 13,542 patients reported various side effects, Ait Taleb explained.
The World Health Organization (WHO) classified 211 of these cases as serious, although no fatalities linked to vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia syndrome have been recorded worldwide.
The minister emphasized that vaccine side effects are considered normal, as they indicate the body’s immune response to building immunity without exposing individuals to the risk of contracting the disease.
He attributed the occurrence of side effects to variations in immune system responses, increased blood flow for immune cell circulation, and elevated body temperature to eliminate the virus.
This announcement comes on the heels of AstraZeneca’s recent global withdrawal of its COVID-19 vaccine.
The pharmaceutical giant cited a decrease in demand for its vaccine, attributing it to the availability of newer alternatives adapted to target emerging variants of the virus.
AstraZeneca also acknowledged in court documents that its vaccine can cause a rare and dangerous side effect known as Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS), which involves blood clots.
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The company faced criticism for taking a year to formally admit the vaccine’s potential side effects, despite its acceptance by the clinical community.
To address concerns, Morocco’s Ministry of Health has implemented a comprehensive patient monitoring system and provides free healthcare to those experiencing severe side effects that require extensive examinations and treatment.
The National Anti-Poison and Pharmacovigilance Center (CAP) has been diligently collecting data on post-vaccination side effects since the national vaccination campaign launched in January 2021.
In a related development, a Moroccan court recently ordered the government to compensate a university professor who suffered health complications after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The court notably instructed the government to pay the woman MAD 250,000 ($24,964) in damages; the Ministry of Health is currently appealing the decision.
