AZ Vaccine 'Unexpected Popularity'... 10,000 People in Their 30s and 40s Gathered on the First Day of Leftover Vaccine Permission

85.9% of AZ leftover vaccine recipients the previous day were in their 30s to 40s

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] As the government allowed people aged 30 and above to receive leftover AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccines, it has been confirmed that more than 10,000 people in their 30s and 40s were vaccinated in a single day.

According to the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team (Promotion Team) on the 18th, 11,651 people received leftover AZ vaccines the previous day through same-day rapid reservations on SNS and standby lists at medical institutions. Among them, 3,246 were in their 30s and 6,760 were in their 40s. This means that 85.9% of the leftover AZ vaccine recipients, or 10,006 people, were in their 30s and 40s.

Hong Jeong-ik, head of the Vaccination Management Team at the Promotion Team, stated at a briefing that "Since messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine reservations are ongoing for those aged 30 and above, accessibility was opened to provide an opportunity to choose whether to receive the mRNA vaccine or the leftover AZ vaccine," adding, "We are not actively promoting the leftover AZ vaccine."

He continued, "Even after all the original AZ vaccine recipients were vaccinated, there was still a surplus of doses," emphasizing, "Rather than implementing a policy where some people cannot be vaccinated while vaccines are discarded, we changed the leftover vaccine vaccination age to 30 and above to provide an opportunity for vaccination and choice."

Previously, the quarantine authorities had allowed leftover AZ vaccines at entrusted medical institutions to be administered to those aged 30 and above. The vaccination age for the AZ vaccine, which was originally recommended only for those aged 50 and above, was lowered to 30 and above. Starting from the 13th, AZ vaccines began to be administered to people in their 30s and 40s through standby lists at medical institutions, and from the previous day, vaccination through SNS reservations also became possible.

In particular, the popularity of the leftover AZ vaccines has exceeded initial expectations. Despite ongoing pre-reservations for the general public aged 18 to 49 and high social distrust of the AZ vaccine, it was widely expected that people in their 30s and 40s would be reluctant to receive leftover vaccines. Regarding this popularity, Team Leader Hong responded, "Rather than the superiority of any vaccine, people likely made careful considerations and judgments based on differences in known adverse reactions and their personal circumstances and conditions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.