Number of South Koreans dying after flu shot rises, prompts vaccine worries
22 October, 2020
At least 13 South Koreans have died after acquiring flu shots in recent days, according to official and local media reports, ramping up fears about vaccine safety even while authorities rule out a link.
Health authorities said on Wednesday (Oct 21) that they had no plans to suspend a programme to inoculate around 19 million persons for free after an initial investigation into six deaths found no direct link with the vaccines.
No toxic substances have been within the vaccines, and at least five of the six persons investigated had underlying conditions, officials said.
Officials have reported nine deaths following flu vaccinations and the Yonhap news agency reported another four on Thursday.
The deaths, such as a 17-year-old boy and a man in his 70s, come only a week following the free flu shot programme for teenagers and older persons was restarted.
The programme was suspended for three weeks after it had been learned that some 5 million doses, which must be refrigerated, had been exposed to room temperature while being transported to a medical facility.
South Korea's vaccines come from a number of sources. Manufacturers include local drug makers GC Pharma, SK Bioscience and Ilyang Pharmaceutical, along with France's Sanofi and Britain's GlaxoSmithKline. Distributors include LG Chem and Boryung Biopharma, a unit of Boryung Pharm.
GC Pharma, LG Chem, SK Bioscience and Boryung declined to comment. Ilyang Pharmaceutical, Sanofi and GSK cannot immediately be reached for comment.
South Korea had extended its seasonal vaccine programme this season to defend against any potential COVID-19 issues and overburdening hospitals over the wintertime.
Officials said 8.3 million persons have been inoculated with the free flu vaccine because it resumed on Oct 13, with around 350 cases of adverse reactions reported.
The highest number of deaths linked to the seasonal flu vaccination was six in 2005, in line with the Yonhap news agency. Officials have said it really is difficult to create comparisons to previous years because of the greater numbers of folks taking the vaccine this season.
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