Germany increases pressure on EMA to approve COVID-19 vaccine before Christmas
Germany’s Health Minister, Jens Spahn has pushed Europe’s Medicines Agency (EMA) for a quick approval of a COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by US drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, asking for an authorisation before Christmas.
“Our goal is an approval before Christmas so that we can still start vaccinating this year,” Spahn said on Monday, with his announcement coming amid a spike in COVID-19 case across the country and an alarming increase in the death toll in recent weeks.
Later in the day, speaking to German public broadcaster ZDF, the German Health Minister said that by the end of summer 2021, the country would be able to vaccinate up to 60% of the citizens, while over the weekend, he had stressed that Germany had created more than 400 vaccination centers and had activated about 10,000 doctors and medical staff, adding that the country was ready to start mass vaccinations as early as Tuesday.
Following Germany’s call, an exceptional meeting of EMA’s human medicines committee (CHMP) has been scheduled for December 21, to conclude on the evaluation of data submitted by BioNTech and Pfizer.
“Every day counts – we work at full speed to authorise COVID-19 vaccines that are safe and effective,” the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen wrote in a Twitter post on Tuesday, welcoming EMA’s move to discuss the Pfizer vaccine authorisation before Christmas.
The Commission President also reiterated her past statement that the first EU citizens will get a vaccine shot before the end of the year and that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.
Every day counts – we work at full speed to authorise #COVID19 vaccines that are safe & effective.
I welcome @EMA_News bringing forward its meeting to discuss the @pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, before Christmas.
Likely that the first Europeans will be vaccinated before end 2020!— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) December 15, 2020
