Iceland Returning Vaccines To Norway

The Ministry of Health recently told the RÚV news agency that Iceland has to send 16,000 doses of AstraZeneca back to Norway by the end of June.

Sending vaccines back to Norway

Norway has not used AstraZeneca since March after the nation announced they would withdraw AstraZeneca from its vaccination program due to the risk of rare blood clots. However, Iceland continued to use the vaccine when 16,000 doses were borrowed from Norway at the end of April to further bolster Iceland’s vaccination plan. The ministry announced that they would have to return those doses to Norway by the end of this month, “unless otherwise agreed.”

Inconsistencies with AstraZeneca

At the end of May, Iceland had received 17,000 doses of AstraZeneca with an additional 7,000 expected to arrive this month. The ever-changing delivery schedule and lack of information have made a planned distribution of this vaccine difficult for health authorities. Now, the focus has shifted to first, fully vaccinating those who have already received their initial dose of AstraZeneca.

To combat discrepancies, the ministry has requested confirmation from the pharmaceutical company for confirmed delivery plans, noting that “The company faced production difficulties in the beginning and no other explanations have been received.” If further complications arrive, Þórólfur Guðnason, an epidemiologist, explains that those who are unable to receive their second injection of AstraZeneca would likely be replaced with Pfizer to become fully vaccinated against the virus.

Note: Due to the effect the Coronavirus is having on tourism in Iceland, it’s become increasingly difficult for the Grapevine to survive. If you enjoy our content and want to help the Grapevine’s journalists do things like eat and pay rent, please consider joining our High Five Club.

You can also check out our shop, loaded with books, apparel and other cool merch, that you can buy and have delivered right to your door.

Also you can get regular news from Iceland—including the latest notifications on eruptions, as soon as they happen—by signing up to our newsletter.