SEOUL: South Korea on Thursday authorised AstraZeneca PLC's antibody-based therapy for preventing COVID-19 infection in people with a poor immune response, increasing its options as it works to ease the pandemic burden on the healthcare system.
Nearly 87 per cent of South Korea's 52 million people are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while 65 per cent have also had a booster, government data showed. However, individuals with compromised immune systems or those with a history of severe adverse reaction to vaccines may need alternative prevention options.
AstraZeneca in March said Evusheld retained its neutralising activity against the Omicron coronavirus variant in an independent study, and that it reduced the risk of symptomatic COVID-19 by 77 per cent in trials.