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LONDON / GENEVA – Developers of a coronavirus vaccine in Britain on Monday claimed success after massive testing, as the United States announced it aims to give injections to 20 million people by the end of the year to combat rising infections. .
AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford said their drug had shown an average 70 percent effectiveness in stopping the virus after testing it in 23,000 people, days after tests of two other drugs suggested they were more than 90 percent effective. .
Olivier Nataf, AstraZeneca’s director in France, said the 70 percent rate is the result of a combined analysis.
With a regimen of a first injection of half a dose of the vaccine and then a full dose a month later, the effectiveness was 90 percent, he said.
Another system of a full dose first and another one a month later, the effectiveness is 62 percent. Nataf said this is an interesting lesson: the half-dose plus one-dose scheme can become something we follow, there is an opportunity for availability to the population, where fewer doses would be needed to vaccinate more people.
The second point to remember, he said, is that there is 100 percent protection against severe forms of illness and hospitalizations in participants who received the vaccine.
And the last point is the confirmation of the safety: no serious side effects have been reported, the vaccine is well tolerated in both dosage regimens. Finally, there is greater simplicity in storage, transport, handling, under normal refrigeration conditions of 2 to 8 degrees. This is a very interesting element from a public health point of view, Nataf said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told MPs that thanks to the vaccine “the escape route is in sight” from the coronavirus crisis, while warning that in the immediate future “Christmas cannot be normal” .
AstraZeneca has said that the vaccine will be available at a cost price of around € 2.50 ($ 3) per dose as part of its agreement with Oxford, in order to be able to provide the vaccine to the widest possible population, in the most equitable conditions. possible access.
“We are committed to these three billion doses at cost price by 2021. We must not forget that this is a race against the virus rather than a race for the vaccine between competitors,” Nataf said.
He said that we will produce three billion doses worldwide in 2021.
Parallel and independent supply chains were quickly established: in the United States, in several European countries and in the rest of the world, he said.
Production is underway. We have announced the first agreements with various governments and non-governmental organizations, Nataf said.
It will be possible to provide the vaccine as soon as the final results of clinical trials, and especially evaluations by health authorities, are available.
Production is increasing, there are already 50 million doses of active substances available and capacity is increasing almost weekly, he added.
The poorest must not be trampled With COVID-19 vaccines on the horizon, the poorest on the planet must not be trampled on as countries struggle to get their hands on them, the World Health Organization said Monday.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the latest batch of promising results from end-stage vaccine candidate trials showed that there was light at the end of the “long dark tunnel” of the coronavirus pandemic. But he said the world had to make sure they were distributed fairly around the world.
“Every government rightly wants to do everything possible to protect its people,” Tedros said at a virtual press conference.
“But now there is a real risk that the poorest and most vulnerable will be trampled on in the vaccine stampede.”
“With the latest positive news from vaccine trials, the light at the end of this long dark tunnel is getting brighter. There is now real hope that vaccines, in combination with other tried and tested public health measures, will help end the pandemic, “said Tedros.
“The importance of this scientific achievement cannot be overstated. No vaccine in history has developed as rapidly as these. The scientific community has set a new standard for vaccine development. “Combination Vaccine Project Anticipating the huge demand for any approved vaccine, WHO has helped create the so-called Covax facility to ensure equitable distribution.
Tedros said there are now 187 countries on board.
The international vaccine procurement group aims to get its hands on two billion doses of safe and effective vaccines by the end of next year.
However, it is struggling to raise the funds needed to serve the 92 low-income countries and other economies that joined quickly.
Tedros said $ 4.3 billion is needed immediately to support the mass procurement and delivery of COVID19 vaccines, tests and treatments, while another $ 23.8 billion would be needed in 2021.
“The real question is not whether the world can afford to share COVID19 vaccines and other tools; it’s if he can afford not to, ”Tedros said.
Leaders at the G20 virtual summit said Sunday they would “spare no effort” to ensure a fair distribution of coronavirus vaccines, but the united front was pierced by Angela Merkel, who expressed concern about the slow progress.
The German chancellor said she was concerned that major deals on vaccines for poorer nations have not yet been reached, even as rich countries have already bought a large number of doses from pharmaceutical companies.
India is the first priority India will take the first priority for the delivery of the AstraZeneca / Oxford vaccine after its British developers claimed success after the massive tests, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by volume said on Monday.
Serum Institute of India Executive Director Adar Poonawalla said the manufacturer has already produced 40 million doses of the vaccine so far. “By January, we should have, you know, 100 million doses is the minimum because we’ve already made 40 million doses,” Poonawalla, whose father founded the vaccine maker, told television station NDTV.
Poonawalla said he expected about 90 percent of the Serum Institute’s doses to be sold to the Indian government for about 250 rupees (US $ 3.00).
“Most of that 90 percent is what will go to the government of India and perhaps 10 percent to the private market at the highest price (of Rs 1,000),” he said.
“We hope to get this emergency use license so that by the end of December, January, we can start rolling out some (doses).” AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford said Monday that their drug had shown an average 70 percent effectiveness in stopping the virus after testing it on 23,000 people.
The Oxford drug can be easily transported at normal refrigerator temperatures, unlike some of the other candidates, which require extremely cold storage.
AstraZeneca said it plans to produce up to three billion doses of the vaccine in 2021 if it overcomes the remaining regulatory hurdles.
In August, the Serum Institute reached an agreement with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to produce up to 100 million doses of COVID-19 from two different possible vaccines from AstraZeneca and the American biotech company Novavax.
‘Immediate impact’
The latest vaccine results are particularly important as the Oxford drug can be easily transported at normal refrigerator temperatures, unlike some of the other candidates, which require extremely cold storage.
AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said that despite the vaccine’s lower efficacy compared to the other candidate drugs, it will remain highly effective and will have “immediate impact.”
The firm said it plans to produce up to three billion doses of the vaccine in 2021 if it overcomes remaining regulatory hurdles.
Two other prominent candidates, one from Pfizer and German partner BioNTech and another from American firm Moderna, reported 95 percent effectiveness in trials.
The European Union said it could approve the use of vaccines before the end of the year, following a statement by US officials that a vaccination program could start next month.
“Our plan is to be able to ship vaccines to vaccination sites within 24 hours of approval,” said Moncef Slaoui, director of the vaccination effort in the US, which continues to be the worst affected nation in the world with more than 12 million infections and 255,000 deaths. .
The government’s vaccine advisers will meet on December 10 to discuss approval.
Slaoui estimated that 20 million people in the US could be vaccinated in December, and 30 million per month after that.
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