– AstraZeneca has requested the European Medicines Agency to withdraw its COVID-19 vaccine authorization
– The withdrawal was due to safety concerns over rare blood clots
– Limited data on effectiveness in older adults and doubts about safety led to initial restrictions
– The vaccine was approved in January 2021 and distributed to poorer countries through a U.N.-coordinated program
– Studies suggested Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines provided better protection, leading most countries to switch
– The U.K. relied heavily on AstraZeneca’s vaccine but eventually turned to mRNA vaccines
– The vaccine, developed by scientists at Oxford University with government support, is now rarely used globally.