Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth said reports the Oxford University COVID-19 vaccine had recorded a major setback in trials needed to be investigated.
Dr Coatsworth told Today the reported adverse reaction in trials did “not mean that the Oxford vaccine is dead”.
“But it is a serious adverse reaction, and it needs to be investigated.”
Dr Coatsworth said it showed the Oxford vaccine developers were following rigorous safety procedures in reporting the incident.
“The focus on safety is exactly the same and I’m actually taking a lot of reassurance out of these early breaking stories this morning,” he said.
The Federal Government has signed a contract with pharmaceutical giant Astra Zeneca to buy 25 million doses of the vaccine.
