The world has seen enough of covid-19 disasters. It is pleasant news coming from the UK that the coronavirus vaccine has now been allowed for the general public.
Sources have revealed that the UK government has allowed Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to be used to treat covid-19 patients. It is indeed the best news in 2020.
“I would like to thank all those who have made this possible”
UK PM Boris Johnson welcomes the news of the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid vaccine being approved in the UK saying it "will allow us to reclaim our lives and get our economy moving again”https://t.co/8l1eBxskhv pic.twitter.com/uY4e7e8i3y
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) December 2, 2020
Britain’s medicines regulator (MHRA) says the jab, which offers up to 95% protection against Covid-19 illness, is allowed to be rolled out.
About 800,000 doses are on the way to the UK with the first block to reach today, Pfizer said.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the NHS will contact people about jabs.
The government has prioritized citizens based on age and profession. Elderly people in care homes and care home staff have been placed top of the priority list. The second wave of the vaccine will be provided to the over-80s and health and care staff.
The hospitals that already have the facilities to store the vaccine at -70C will be set up as the base camp for vaccination. The process is standardized to avoid any wastage of the vaccine.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson requested the public not to get “carried away with over-optimism or falling into the naive belief that our struggle is over”.
It has been revealed that the Pfizer/BioNTech jab is the fastest vaccine to go from concept to reality. It took them only 10 months to complete the steps that normally take up to 10 years. This might be one of the reasons why PM Boris Johnson has urged the public to stay focused and to follow the SOPs.
The UK has already ordered 40 million doses of the jab. These would be enough to vaccinate 20 million people.
The doses will be rolled out as quickly as they can be made by Pfizer in Belgium, Mr. Hancock said, with the first load next week and then “several million” throughout December.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the first people in Scotland will be immunized on Tuesday.
Welsh Health and Social Care Minister Vaughan Gething said the rollout of the Pfizer jab to care homes would be particularly difficult because of how it needs to be stored.
Mr. Gething said that it was not possible to transport the Pfizer vaccine to more than 1,000 care homes across Wales.
Mr. Hancock said that the bulk of the rollout across the UK will be next year, adding: “2020 has been just awful and 2021 is going to be better.”
