Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine, which proved up to 95 per cent efficacy in the late stage trials, may get approval for use in UK, according to several media reports.
If reports are to be believed, U.K.’s National Health Service is eyeing the December timeline to administer vaccine in the county. As a part of its vaccine distributions strategy, it is estimated that every adult in UK might get vaccinated till April 2021.
The first one to be injected with the vaccine shots will be health professionals, essential service workers and people vulnerable to the virus including older adults. People aged between 18 and 50 will get vaccinated in January, according to the current draft plan by the officials.
British health minister Matt Hancock on Monday said that the United Kingdom plans to roll out the first doses of the vaccine before Christmas if it is declared safe and active.
We’re working very closely with the company,” Hancock told BBC TV. “We’ll be ready to roll it out as soon as it comes, we’ll be ready from the first of December, but more likely is that we may be able to start rolling it out before Christmas.”
Meanwhile, Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech has said that they are submitting data from the full phase 3 trial for scientific peer-review publication.
Last week, it was reported that Pfizer has formally asked US regulators to allow emergency use of its covid-19 vaccine as early as next month.
The companies had said that their vaccine provides good safety records, making it eligible for emergency authorization.