Australia backs AstraZeneca COVID vaccine despite blood clot concerns.

   CANBERRA, March 16 -- The Australian government has reaffirmed its commitment to the rollout of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine despite growing safety concerns overseas.
   Several countries have suspended the rollout of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine following reports that recipients formed blood clots.
   Addressing concerns on Tuesday, Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said there was no evidence linking the vaccine to the clots.
   "The European equivalent of the Therapeutic Goods Administration as well as the World Health Organization have said the AstraZeneca vaccine is effective, and there's no evidence of causation between the vaccine itself and the blood clots," he said.
   His comments came hours after government Member of Parliament Matt Canavan called for the rollout to be paused.
   "Given we are in a country that does not face an imminent risk of coronavirus spread, surely the prudent approach here is to suspend our rollout and just take heed of the evidence that will emerge in coming months," he said.
   The AstraZeneca vaccine will form the backbone of Australia's COVID-19 vaccination program with the government having agreed to acquire 53.8 million doses, 50 million of which will be manufactured locally.
   Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said he had considered the European situation on Monday night and decided that the vaccine was safe.  Xinhua