The end of the “temporary” is nearing for the Pfizer and BioNtech vaccine in the United States. In fact, the US Drug Agency, the FDA, should fully approve this Covid-19 vaccine by September, it said Tuesday. New York Times.
According to the newspaper, which cites sources familiar with the matter, “the unofficial date” that the vaccine is expected to get clearance from the FDA “is around Labor Day or earlier.” This holiday is celebrated each year on the first Monday in September, that is, September 6, 2021. At the moment, Pfizer delivers its vaccines under a temporary emergency authorization that had been granted on December 11, 2020.
Last week, the FDA indicated that the Covid-19 vaccine approval procedure was “among the agency’s highest priorities” and that it intended to make its decision long before the deadline expired. Full approval of the serum could boost confidence and push more Americans to get vaccinated at a time when the highly contagious Delta variant is increasing the number of cases in the country.
Some 192 million Americans have received at least one dose of the vaccine, or 58% of the population or 70% of adults. At the same time, as of July 27, according to figures from the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), Covid-19 cases had risen to 66,000 per day, six times more than in June.
Moderna, the other widely used vaccine, also licensed on an emergency basis, was also applied, but later sought full approval. Johnson & Johnson and its single-dose vaccine have yet to order it, according to the newspaper.