[ad_1]
After the stop of the European Medicines Agency (Ema), the vaccine produced by the AstraZeneca-Oxford tandem was approved today, Wednesday 30 December, by the UK Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency
The first doses of the immunizer developed by Great Britain Pharmaceuticals to launch in the UK from January 4: the acceleration responds to the need for London to face the increase in cases in the country, where a new variant of the virus is revealing a potential for contagion much greater than the trend in recent months.
AstraZeneca’s vaccine is a flagship of British scientific research, and sooner or later it will have to be approved and distributed across the Channel. According to observers, in fact, the English immunizer is the only product currently available on the market that It has the characteristics necessary to quickly extinguish the pandemic season..
AstraZeneca vaccine is crucial for economic recovery
A few months ago it would have been difficult to imagine the current vaccine offering: from Pfizer-BioNTech to Moderna, there are numerous Big Pharmas that in record time have developed immunizers to stop the circulation of the virus.
The main economies have already prepared their shopping lists, ensuring billions of doses from different manufacturers and setting aside some quotas for countries that cannot afford the costs. Furthermore, in today’s globalized world, the economic recovery would be below expectations if the pandemic continues to sweep through the most disadvantaged areas.
The range of options is therefore wide, but the rebound in the economy will largely depend on possibility of distributing the AstraZeneca vaccine inclusive. A question of costs, first of all, in terms of securing a dose of the English immunizer they only need 3 pounds, compared to 15 for Pfizer-BioNTech.
In addition, the AstraZeneca product does not present those storage difficulties that could slow down other vaccines. The Pfizer-BioNTech immunizer, for example, should be kept at a temperature of minus 70 degrees, whereas a normal refrigerator might suffice for the British vaccine.
Add to this the fact that AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford plan to increase production to 3 billion doses in 2021, a significantly higher share than predicted by Pfizer-BioNTech (1.3 billion) or Moderna (between 500 million and one billion).
Therefore, price, management and production estimates make the AstraZeneca vaccine something of a ‘condition sine qua non’ for countries aspiring to strengthen economic fundamentals in 2021. But there is a risk: so far British manufacturers have indicated a degree of vaccine efficacy well below that shown by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. In the absence of appropriate adjustments, it cannot be ruled out that the fight on the front lines of the pandemic will take another turn.
