AstraZeneca vaccine not offered to under-40s in Jersey

Vaccination bosses said they were stopping offering under-40s the AstraZeneca jab "with immediate effect"

People under 40 in Jersey will not get the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine because of blood clot concerns, the island's government has confirmed.

Health officials said the new advice came after a very small increase in reports of extremely rare cases of clots following the first dose.

However the government said anyone under 40 who had already had a first AstraZeneca dose should get the second.

It added was "in a strong position" to complete all vaccinations by August.

Jersey's government said the UK's Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) had issued a new recommendation saying it was preferable for people under 40 with no underlying health conditions to be offered an alternative vaccine.

'Schedule may be affected'

In the UK there have been just over 240 reports of clots out of more than 28 million doses of the jab.

Jersey's vaccination programme head, Becky Sherrington, said the island would be implementing the advice "with immediate effect".

The risk of blood clots is extremely rare, but is slightly higher in younger age groups according to the JCVI

She said: "We have adjusted our delivery model and are ready to offer the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines to anyone under 40 who is attending for their first vaccination appointment from this weekend.

"This news will have some impact on our schedule for vaccinating islanders under the age of 30, but we remain in a strong position to complete the programme by August.

She also said there were "no safety concerns associated with people receiving a second dose of AstraZeneca and we will continue to offer it as a second dose for those who have received it as a first dose".

In Guernsey, the island's government said at the end of April it advised people under 30 without other health conditions to have another Covid-19 vaccine instead of AstraZeneca.

Follow BBC Jersey on Twitter and Facebook. Send any story ideas to [e-mail].