Refrigerators ready to keep Pfizer vaccine 0:46
(CNN) - The
UK has approved Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine and is scheduled to be available across the country next week.
Pfizer and BioNTech previously said that analysis of the vaccine showed it to be 95% effective with no safety concerns.
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In a statement, the UK Department of Health (NHS) said it had "accepted the recommendation of the independent Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve" the vaccine, after "months from rigorous clinical trials and extensive data analysis by MHRA experts who have concluded that the vaccine has met their strict standards for safety, quality and efficacy.
"Available from next week"
'The vaccine will be available throughout the UK from next week.
The NHS has decades of experience implementing large-scale vaccination programs and will begin to implement its extensive preparations to provide care and support to all those eligible for vaccination, ”the statement added.
"To help the vaccination program succeed, it is vital that everyone continues to play their role and abide by the necessary restrictions in their area so that we can further suppress the virus and allow the NHS to do its job without feeling overwhelmed."
In reaction to the news, Ugur Sahin, co-founder of BioNTech, which co-produced the vaccine, said that this "will mark the first time that citizens outside the trials will have the opportunity to be immunized against COVID-19."
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"We believe that the implementation of the vaccination program in the UK will reduce the number of people in the high-risk population who will be hospitalized," Sahin said in a statement.
“Our goal is to bring a safe and effective vaccine after approval to the people who need it.
The data submitted to regulatory agencies around the world is the result of a scientifically rigorous and highly ethical research and development program.
Other countries, including the United States, are considering approval of several coronavirus vaccines before the end of the year.
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