The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the emergency use of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, and millions of doses are poised to ship out to counter the latest surge of the Wuhan coronavirus.
The approval clears the way for the first wave of American recipients — millions of health workers and nursing home residents — to begin getting shots very soon.“The first vaccine will be administered in less than 24 hours,” Trump said Friday night at 9:30 p.m.“The governors decide where the vaccines will go in their state, and who will get them first. We want our senior citizens, health care workers and first responders to be first in line.”
This authorization kicks off the final phase in the vaccine’s development and use trajectory: Distribution, beginning with healthcare workers and vulnerable citizens.
The authorization set off a complicated coordination effort from Pfizer, private shipping companies, state and local health officials, the military, hospitals and pharmacy chains to get the first week’s batch of about three million doses to health care workers and nursing home residents as quickly as possible, all while keeping the vaccine at ultracold temperatures.Pfizer has a deal with the U.S. government to supply 100 million doses of the vaccine by next March. Under that agreement, the shots will be free to the public.Every state, along with six major cities, has submitted to the federal government a list of locations — mostly hospitals — where the Pfizer vaccine is to ship initially. In populous Florida, the first recipients will be five hospitals, in Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Tampa and Hollywood. In tiny, rural Vermont, only the University of Vermont Medical Center and a state warehouse will get supplies.
President Donald Trump praised the move, calling it “really good news” for the country and an historic accomplishment.
“Today our nation has achieved a medical miracle. We have delivered a safe and effective vaccine in just nine months. It is one of the greatest scientific accomplishments in history. It will save millions of lives and soon end the pandemic once and for all,” Trump said in a video posted to Twitter.“On behalf of the American people, I’d like to thank all of the brilliant scientists, technicians, doctors and workers who made this all possible,” he added.
Additionally, Moderna reported that the federal government will get an additional 100 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, which is expected to be delivered in the second quarter of 2021 if authorized.
Moderna Inc said on Friday the U.S. government will get an additional 100 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate, expected to be delivered in the second quarter of 2021 if authorized.. . . . The United States in August entered an agreement with Moderna to acquire 100 million doses of its potential COVID-19 vaccine for around $1.5 billion, with an option to secure an additional 400 million doses.
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