Pfizer vaccine now preferred over AstraZeneca for Australians under 50

The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is now the preferred shot for adults in Australia under the age of 50, after the government received new medical advice around the AstraZeneca jab following confirmation of a link between it and rare blood clots.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison at a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra. Source: AAP

In a surprise press conference on Thursday night, Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation had met after European authorities confirmed the link, and made recommendations the Pfizer shot be preferred for adults under 50 who have not already received their first AstraZeneca dose.