By NewsDesk @bactiman63
The Philippines Department of Health (DOH) reported 401 new COVID-19 deaths Friday, a new daily record in fatalities on the archipelago since the beginning of the pandemic.
In addition, health officials reported 12,225 new infections today, bringing the country’s total cases to 840,554.
The public is reminded to stay at home and to observe minimum health standards when going out.
In related news, the DOH on Thursday adopted the recommendation of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to temporarily suspend the use of AstraZeneca vaccines for individuals aged below 60 years old, following recent reports of rare cases of blood clots with low platelets detected in some individuals inoculated with the vaccine.
“We are aware of the recommendation of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to list blood clots as very rare side effects of the AstraZeneca vaccine. While we have not seen such incidents in the country, the FDA has recommended to temporarily suspend the use of the vaccine for persons below 60 years old as we await results of the review being done by our local experts, as well as the official guidance of the WHO,” FDA Director General Rolando Enrique Domingo said.
“I want to emphasize that this temporary suspension DOES NOT MEAN that the vaccine is unsafe or ineffective—it just means that we are taking precautionary measures to ensure the safety of every Filipino. We continue to underscore that the benefits of vaccination continue to outweigh the risks and we urge everyone to get vaccinated when it’s their turn,” FDA Director General Domingo added.
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