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A person is injected with the Novavax vaccine as part of a study (archive image)
Photo: Alastair Grant/AP
In Germany, the start of corona vaccinations with the Novavax preparation is imminent.
In several countries such as Hamburg or Saarland, vaccinations are possible from this Saturday, sometimes without an appointment, as the health authorities of both countries announced on Friday.
In most other countries, Novavax vaccinations are scheduled to start next week.
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The first deliveries of the preparation arrived on Thursday at the Bundeswehr in Quakenbrück, Lower Saxony, and delivery to the federal states began on Friday.
The remedy is to be offered primarily to employees in the healthcare sector.
There are hopes it could be an alternative for those skeptical of Biontech/Pfizer and Moderna's mRNA vaccines.
The Novavax vaccine is based on a more classic process.
The preparation contains tiny particles made up of a lab-made version of the Sars-CoV-2 spike protein.
"I hope that this vaccine will be an incentive for many undecided people to get vaccinated after all, and that the vaccination rate will continue to increase," said the President of the Robert Koch Institute, Lothar Wieler, on Friday with a view to the newly available vaccine.
The drug, called Nuvaxovid, is said to be approved for people over the age of 18.
Like the other corona vaccines, it is injected into the muscle tissue of the upper arm.
The Standing Vaccination Commission recommends two vaccinations at least three weeks apart, it said.
The preparation is suitable for basic immunization, but has not yet been approved for booster vaccinations.
According to the Federal Ministry of Health, Germany should receive around four million doses of Novavax in the first quarter.
Up to 30 million more doses are to follow from April to June.
mar/dpa