Subject to the vaccine being proven safe and effective.
The European Commission has approved a contract to purchase up to 300 million doses of a new Covid-19 vaccine being developed by BioNTech and Pfizer.
Should the vaccine receive regularity approval from the European Medicines Agency, it’s expected Pfizer will begin deliveries at the end of the year.
The contract provides for the initial purchase of 200 million doses on behalf of all EU Member States, plus an option to request up to a further 100 million doses, to be supplied once a vaccine has proven to be safe and effective against Covid-19.
Speaking on Wednesday, President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said the contract meant the EU now had an “extremely solid vaccine candidate portfolio” and ensured that Europe is well prepared for vaccination.
“In the wake of Monday’s promising announcement by BioNTech and Pfizer on the prospects for their vaccine, I’m very happy to announce today’s agreement with the European company BioNTech and Pfizer to purchase 300 million doses of the vaccine,” von der Leyen said.
“With this fourth contract we are now consolidating an extremely solid vaccine candidate portfolio, most of them in advanced trials phase. Once authorised, they will be quickly deployed and bring us closer to a sustainable solution of the pandemic.”
The vaccines are set to be made in Germany and Belgium, and member states that opted into the deal will place orders separately.
On Monday, Pfizer and BioNTech published the first set of results from the Phase 3 Covid-19 vaccine trial, a day described as “a great day for science and humanity” by Dr. Albert Bourla, Pfizer Chairman and CEO.
The results revealed that the vaccine candidate was found to be more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 in participants without evidence of prior infection, in analysis by an external, independent Data Monitoring Committee.
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