Pfizer vaccine approved in the UK – vaccination begins next week – E24

Health Minister Matt Hancock says this is fantastic news and that the NHS public health service is ready and will start vaccination next week.

The vaccine was developed by German BioNTech, with funding from the US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer.

– Help is on the way and we can see the way out. Now we see that by spring, we will be done with this. Let’s keep our will until then, Hancock said in an interview with British Sky News on Wednesday morning.

This vaccine is also at the forefront of approval in the EU and Norway. A decision can be made before December 29. Preliminary test results show, according to Pfizer, that the vaccine is 95 percent effective and has no serious side effects.

In the UK, 50 hospitals are ready and waiting to receive the vaccine, says the Health Minister. Older people, people in nursing homes and those who work there will be the first to get the vaccine in the UK, Hancock says.

Follow the development of coronavirus vaccines on General description of the VG vaccine.

Will only

For the rest of the European countries, the vaccine will be presented at a meeting of the EU Scientific Committee on December 29. For the UK, an approval is already in progress.

– The United Kingdom will in any case abandon collaboration on drugs in January. Obviously, they have chosen to go solo a little earlier. Otherwise, all the countries in Europe have already decided that we should have a common vaccine start, explains Steinar Madsen, who is physician and medical director of the Norwegian Medicines Agency.

– In Norway, we have a clear attitude that we want to participate in a joint European approval. The approval system in Europe is good and we want approval to be based on a solid scientific basis and extensive research, Madsen continues.

Therefore, it is not relevant to have a corresponding urgent approval here in Norway. Madsen, however, describes the British approval as good news.

– We must take into account the fact that the English authorities have carried out as thorough an assessment as possible, but at the same time it is a pity that they choose to break with European cooperation.

Difficult to store

The vaccine requires two doses per person to be effective and must be stored at minus 70 degrees. Because of this, it can be difficult to store and transport.

On Wednesday, Pfizer shared photos of the vaccine, showing how it should be packed in thermo boxes before shipping.

Three other vaccines are also relevant to Norway through “ongoing review” in EU systems. The Moderna and Oxford vaccine candidates, as well as the Johnson & Johnson candidate, were admitted for evaluation on Tuesday.

While some vaccine candidates may be easier to prepare because they can survive refrigerator temperatures, the Johnson & Johnson candidate, for example, has another advantage: It only requires one dose to be effective.

The case is being updated.

Click on the graphic below to read more about the Pfizer vaccine:

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