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A worker walks past a line of freezers containing the vaccine candidate BNT162b2 for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at a Pfizer facility in Puurs, Belgium, in an undated photo.
Pfizer | via Reuters
The UK became the first country in the world to authorize the Pfizer / BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, and it will be available starting next week.
“The Government today accepted the recommendation of the Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine,” the government said on Wednesday.
“The vaccine will be available throughout the UK from next week.”
BioNTech, the German biotech that developed the vaccine with Pfizer, said in a statement that the companies are ready to deliver the first doses to the UK immediately.
Pfizer Chairman and CEO Albert Bourla said the clearance from the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) was a “historic moment.”
“Today’s emergency use authorization in the UK marks a historic moment in the fight against Covid-19. This authorization is a goal that we have been working towards since we first declared 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, “he said.
“As we anticipate more clearances and approvals, we are focused on moving forward with the same level of urgency to safely deliver a high-quality vaccine around the world. With thousands of people infected, every day matters in the collective race to put an end to this devastating pandemic. “
Pfizer and BioNTech announced in July an agreement with the United Kingdom to supply 30 million doses of their mRNA-based vaccine, formally known as “BNT162b2”, once authorized for emergency use. That deal was increased to 40 million doses in early October.
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