MANILA – The death of 24 individuals who received jabs against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was not due to the vaccine administered, the country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced.
According to FDA director general Eric Domingo, most of the casualties are coincidental or unrelated to the vaccination while others are indeterminate or being investigated.
Of the 24 deaths, 11 were infected with COVID-19, eight had a cardiovascular or cerebrovascular illness, three had an infectious disease, and two others were still under investigation.
Most of the cases involved people with existing illnesses or comorbidities like heart and cerebrovascular diseases, which were among the top causes of deaths in the country.
Meanwhile, Domingo said that 1.41 percent of the almost half a million injected with Sinovac’s vaccine experienced adverse effects following immunization.
Some 24,000 or 2.45 percent of the half a million Filipinos who received AstraZeneca’s jab suffered adverse effects.
Domingo cautioned those who were already inoculated to maintain the health and safety protocols because they can still be infected./PN
