A vaccine for coronavirus could be rolled out in the UK as early as next month if it passes safety checks.
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Health Secretary Matt Hancock confirmed the NHS was ready to administer the jab and that this could happen as soon as one is approved.
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has applied for emergency approval in the US for its Covid-19 vaccine, which phase three trials showed to be 95% effective.
The UK Government has ordered 40 million doses of this jab, as well as 100 million doses of the Oxford jab and five million doses of the Moderna jab.
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Mr Hancock said the Government has asked the UK vaccines regulator to asses the use of the Pfizer jab in the UK and has asked the NHS to be ready to deploy it as soon as it is approved.
He told a No 10 press conference the company had already begun submitting data to the regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), and would submit its full data in the coming days.
He said: ‘The first step in the UK for authorising a vaccine is for the Government formally to ask the independent regulator, the MHRA, to assess its suitability
‘The MHRA, which acts for the entire UK, is one of the world’s most respected regulators.
‘And I can confirm that the Gov has formally asked the MHRA to assess the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine for its suitability for authorisation.
‘[They] have already begun supplying data to the MHRA and will submit their full data in the coming days.’
The Health secretary said the speed of the roll-out of a vaccine would depend on the speed it could be manufactured. He said while some could be administered next month, the bulk would be done early next year.
He said: ‘We know that the manufacturing process for all vaccines is difficult and uncertain so I’ve asked the NHS to be ready to deploy at the speed at which the vaccine can be produced.
‘If, and it still is an if, if the regulator approves a vaccine, we will be ready to start the vaccination next month with the bulk of the roll-out in the new year. We’re heading in the right direction but there is still a long way to go.’
Mr Hancock hailed recent developments on successful vaccine trials as ‘another important step forward in tackling this pandemic’.
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But he said there is ‘still a long way to go’ and described administering the vaccine as a ‘huge logistical challenge’ for the NHS.
The Health Secretary revealed the NHS is in the process of setting up vaccination centres across the UK in preparation for a jab being approaved.
People will be vaccinated at sites around the country, as well as in hospitals and by GPs in the community.
‘The NHS is in the process of establishing vaccination centres across the country that can manage the logistical challenge of needing to store the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine at -70C,’ he said.
‘In addition it is establishing vaccination hubs in hospitals for NHS staff.
‘These two routes are likely to comprise the bulk of the campaign this side of the new year. Then there will be a community roll-out involving GPs and pharmacists.’
He said groups at the highest risk of catching coronavirus, such as the over 80s and healthcare workers, will be the first to get the jab.
Three vaccines – Pfizer/BioNTech, Sputnik and Moderna – have already reported good early results from the final stages of testing, called phase-three trials. Another vaccine, developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, has shown positive results at an earlier stage, phase two.
Earlier, leaked NHS documents revealed all adults in England – of any age – could start to be vaccinated against Covid-19 before the end of January if supplies allow.
Under the draft Covid-19 vaccine deployment programme, every adult who wants a jab could be vaccinated by early April.
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Deputy chief medical officer Johnathan Van Tam, who appeared at the press conference via zoom as he is required to self-isolate, warned there were no guarantees about when a vaccine will start being rolled out.
He also warned it was ‘pointless’ to speculate about how many doses will be available and when.
He said the matter is now in the MHRA’s hands, saying: ‘It will happen at the speed of science.
‘It has to happen in their own time when they are ready and we have to leave them and trust them to get on with that.’
Despite the positive news about the vaccine, Mr Hancock warned it was too early to say what restrictions could be relaxed over Christmas.
He said the second peak of coronavirus is ‘flattening’ but the public must ‘keep our resolve’ for the rest of the lockdown to prevent it rebounding.
It came as figures showed another 511 people died of the virus in the past 24 hours, while more than 20,000 people tested postive.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
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2020-11-20 17:15:00Z
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