Big development
\nTLTP
\nWASHINGTON
\nThe US has authorised the emergency use of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by pharmaceutical company Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech, paving the way for a mass immunisation programme in the country.
\nThe US Food and Drug Administration gave the coronavirus vaccine a green light after a government expert advisory panel concluded the vaccine appeared safe and effective.
\n\u201cThe FDA\u2019s authorisation for emergency use of the first COVID-19 vaccine is a significant milestone in battling this devastating pandemic that has affected so many families in the United States and around the world,\u201d said agency Commissioner Dr Stephen M. Hahn. Hahn said the action followed \u201can open and transparent review process\u201d that included input from multiple experts and scientists to determine the vaccine met the agency\u2019s standards.
\nUS President Donald Trump called the vaccine news a \u201cmedical miracle\u201d and one of the \u201cgreatest scientific achievements in history\u201d in a video posted to his Twitter account. He said that the first vaccine would be administered within 24 hours. The US has signed a deal with Pfizer and BioNTech to buy 100 million doses of the vaccine and can acquire up to 500 million additional doses. The vaccine requires two doses per person, received several weeks apart.
\nThe United Kingdom was the first country to authorise the Pfizer\/BioNTech vaccine and began vaccinating elderly people who are at risk for developing a more severe form of the virus earlier this week. The European Medicines Agency is currently reviewing the vaccine\u2019s safety and efficacy and is set to give a decision before December 29.
\nPfizer and BioNTech were the first companies to release preliminary efficacy results from phase three trials that determined the candidate vaccine was 95% effective, including 94% effective in adults over the age of 65. The vaccine, like a coronavirus vaccine developed by Moderna, uses messenger RNA to instruct cells in the body to make the virus\u2019 spike protein. This does not cause the illness but triggers the immune system to make antibodies against the virus. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Big development TLTP WASHINGTON The US has authorised the emergency use of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by pharmaceutical company Pfizer and German biotechnology company BioNTech, paving the way for a mass immunisation programme in the country. The US Food and Drug Administration gave the coronavirus vaccine a green light after a government expert advisory panel […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-161665","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n