Vaccination in Indianapolis
Moscow. 12 December. INTERFAX.RU – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has agreed to the emergency use of a vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech against the COVID-19 coronavirus in the country.
This decision is expected to give the federal authorities the opportunity to launch a mass vaccination campaign against coronavirus soon.
Earlier, a group of experts from a department subordinate to the Ministry of Health, after many hours of discussions, recommended approving this drug. The experts decided that despite a number of concerns, the benefits of using the vaccine will be much more than problems.
The United States has become the third country after the UK and Canada to use Pfizer / BioNTech for mass vaccinations.
A vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech must be stored at -70C. Earlier, the companies announced 95% effectiveness of the drug in the third – final – stage of clinical trials.
As part of the first round of vaccine distribution, Pfizer plans to ship 6.4 million doses of vaccines to the United States by the end of December. The vaccine consists of two doses, given 21 days apart.
The US health services have previously indicated that priority for vaccination will be given to medical staff and the elderly in nursing homes.
Another vaccine currently seeking US approval is Moderna, which has a clinical trial efficacy of 94.1%. The FDA is scheduled to hold a December 17 meeting to review the company's request for its vaccine.
An emergency use application is a request to start using a drug, without waiting for the completion of absolutely all checks on its effect on the body.
