The government has found no direct links between flu shots and reported deaths and will go ahead with the national vaccination program, the head of its public health agency said Wednesday.

Nine people have died over the past week after receiving the flu vaccine in the country so far, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Commissioner Jung Eun-kyeong speaks at a news conference on Wednesday. (KDCA)
Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency Commissioner Jung Eun-kyeong speaks at a news conference on Wednesday. (KDCA)

KDCA Commissioner Jung Eun-kyeong said autopsies are in progress. Other than the high schooler who died after taking the vaccine, the remaining eight were over 60 years old.

“We have not found a direct connection between deaths and vaccines, or a relation between adverse effects of flu shots and deaths,” Chung said. “As no major adverse effects have been reported from a specific vaccine, we decided not to stop the vaccination program.”

Health officials have been cautious about mentioning the connection between death and the flu vaccines, reiterating that it is a priority to identify death's exact cause.

Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Kim Gang-lip said, “It is difficult to give a clear statement because the government, mainly the KDCA, is conducting an investigation such as autopsy to determine the cause of this death.”

The successive deaths have raised concerns among the public, as the government suspended the vaccination once because some products were exposed to room temperature and contained some of the deposits.

Some people have even refused to take the free vaccines and instead turned toward paid vaccines.

“I have been postponing vaccination for my kid, and the recent series of deaths is making me keep an eye on the situation,” a member of a social network service of mothers said. “I do not know what to do at this moment, as it is the first time seeing people dying after receiving the flu vaccine.”

Kim Jung-gon, a professor of the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescents at Seoul National University Hospital, noted that the World Health Organization strongly encouraged elders, pregnant mothers, patients with underlying diseases, and health professionals to get vaccinated.

Professor Kim added that despite several deaths after flu vaccination this year, high-risk groups should take flu shots, particularly considering the special circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic this year, in reference to the possible “twindemic” situation.

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