The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued Friday evening the first emergency use authorization (EUA) for a coronavirus vaccine, allowing the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine to be distributed in the US.
“The FDA’s authorization 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,” said FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn in a statement.
He affirmed, “today’s action follows an open and transparent review process that included input from independent scientific and public health experts and a thorough evaluation by the agency’s career scientists to ensure this vaccine met FDA’s rigorous, scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality needed to support emergency use authorization.”
Furthermore, the Director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research Peter Marks said “while not an FDA approval, today’s emergency use authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine holds the promise to alter the course of this pandemic in the United States.”
In a video tweet, President Donald Trump said “today our nation has achieved a medical miracle.” “We have delivered a safe and effective vaccine in just 9 months. This is one of the greatest scientific accomplishments in history,” he added. “It will save millions of lives and soon end the pandemic once and for all.”
According to CNBC, the US government plans “to distribute 2.9 million doses of the vaccine within 24 hours, followed by an additional 2.9 million doses 21 days later for patients to get their second shot.”
Source-KUNA
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