UK approves Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for use in world first
The United Kingdom on Wednesday became the first country in the world to approve for use the vaccine of the US pharmaceutical company Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech.
“The government has today accepted the recommendation from the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for use. The vaccine will be made available across the UK from next week”, the government said in a statement.
Authorities said that the first to get the vaccine will be care home residents, health and care staff, the elderly and vulnerable people. Prime minister Boris Johnson said that “it is the protection of vaccines that will ultimately allow us to reclaim our lives and get the economy moving again”.
“This authorisation is a goal we have been working toward since we first declared that science will win, and we applaud the MHRA for their ability to conduct a careful assessment and take timely action to help protect the people of the UK”, said Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.
Last month, Pfizer and BioNTech said that their coronavirus vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 among those without evidence of prior infection, and added that no serious safety concerns had been observed among the more than 43,000 volunteers.
Pfizer added it would immediately begin shipping limited supplies to the UK, where more than 59,000 people have died with the virus, according to official figures.
