The daily business briefing: March 15, 2021

AstraZeneca says vaccine isn't tied to blood clots, Pelosi promises quick push for infrastructure and jobs legislation, and more

The AstraZeneca vaccine
(Image credit: MIGUEL RIOPA/AFP via Getty Images)

1. AstraZeneca says its vaccine not linked to blood clots

AstraZeneca said late Sunday that no scientific evidence existed to tie its coronavirus vaccine to recent deaths in Europe from blood clots. AstraZeneca said 17 million people have been inoculated with its vaccine, and only 15 cases of deep vein thrombosis and 22 pulmonary embolisms have been reported. "This is much lower than would be expected to occur naturally in a general population of this size and is similar across other licensed covid-19 vaccines," the drug maker said. The statement came on the same day that the Dutch government announced it was suspending use of the AstraZeneca vaccine for two weeks pending a safety investigation. Ireland, and Italy's northern Piedmont region, also halted its use, joining Norway, Denmark, and several other countries that took similar action last week following reports about blood clots.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.