The U.K. has already authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for emergency use, signifying a crucial step in fighting the pandemic.
The Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine will be distributed to the country next week, with elderly people in care homes and medical workers as priorities. The U.K. government is believed to be the first worldwide to officially approve the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for public use, and it means Britain will be one of the first countries to start vaccinating its people.
“The government has today accepted the recommendation from the Independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine for use,” the government said Wednesday. “The vaccine will be made available across the U.K. from next week.”
Pfizer’s Chairman and CEO, Albert Bourla, described the authorization as a “historic moment.”
“This authorization is a goal we have been working toward since we first declared that 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 U.K.,” he said.
“With thousands of people becoming infected, every day matters in the collective race to end this devastating pandemic.”
BioNTech announced on Wednesday that the delivery of the 40 million doses will take place throughout 2020 and 2021, with delivery anticipated next year.
A spokesman for the U.K.’s Department of Health and Social Care explained they have yet to determine parts of the public that would be the first to take the vaccine.
“The Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisations (JCVI) will shortly publish its final advice for the priority groups to receive the vaccine, including care home residents, health and care staff, the elderly and the clinically extremely vulnerable,” he said.
Other vaccines
In July, the U.K. government sealed an agreement with GSK and Sanofi to secure up to 60 million doses of an experimental coronavirus vaccine.
The new deal signed by the UK government and with GSK and Sanofi for their coronavirus vaccine will add to the existing deal it signed with AstraZeneca for 100 million doses of the Oxford University vaccine.
In May, Sanofi chief executive officer (CEO) Paul Hudson said the US government had “the right to the largest pre-order because it’s invested in taking the risk”.
However, Hudson changed his stand after then French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe responded by saying access for all was “non-negotiable”. The latest announcement from GSK and Sanofi emphasized that they were “committed to making the vaccine available globally”.
UK Business Secretary Alok Sharma said: “It is important that we secure early access to a diverse range of promising vaccine candidates, like GSK and Sanofi, to increase our chances of finding one that works, so we can protect the public and save lives.”
Kate Bingham, the chairperson of the Vaccines Taskforce, said: “This diversity of vaccine types is important because we do not yet know which, if any, of the different types of vaccine will prove to generate a safe and protective response to Covid-19.”
“Whilst this agreement is very good news, we mustn’t be complacent or over-optimistic,” she pointed out.
