Vaccinations in the US and UK are set to start in the coming week, while inoculations in Russia are under way to stem the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 1.5 million people across the globe.
Vaccinations in the US could begin as early as Friday, with the US Food and Drug Administration set to vote on emergency-use authorization for the Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE shot the day before, an agency adviser told NBC News.
The UK plans to begin inoculations during the week of Dec. 14, as authorities worldwide move to a new stage in tackling the pandemic.
Photo: AP
Queen Elizabeth II is to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine within weeks, after UK regulators granted emergency approval and the world’s first roll-out begins next week, reports said late on Saturday.
The monarch, 94, and her 99-year-old husband, Prince Philip, are in line to get the jab early due to their age and would not receive preferential treatment, the Mail on Sunday reported.
The newspaper said the UK’s most senior royals would reveal they have been given the inoculation “to encourage more people to take up the vital jab,” amid fears that so-called anti-vaxxers could dent enthusiasm for it.
Italian Minister of Health Roberto Speranza said on SkyTg24 television on Saturday that the timing of vaccinations in the country would depend on the European Medicines Agency and that the Italian government plans to administer the vaccine on a voluntary basis once it is available.
Moscow started widespread vaccination of frontline workers and other high-risk people on Saturday, following an order from Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday.
More than 5,000 people signed up in the first five hours of registration on Friday, Moscow’s mayor said on his blog.
In China, more than 1 million people have received experimental vaccines under emergency use approval. Health experts have questioned why China is using them on such a vast scale now that the outbreak is largely under control within its borders.
Health officials previously said China would be able to manufacture 610 million doses by the end of this year and ramp up to 1 billion doses next year.
The government of Jiangsu Province, where Nanjing is located, issued a procurement notice for vaccines from Sinovac Biotech Ltd (北京科興生物製品) and Sinopharm Group Ltd (國藥控股) on Wednesday for emergency use vaccinations.
Authorities in Sichuan Province, which has about 85 million people, on Monday last week announced that they were already buying vaccines.
An official newspaper in Anhui Province said a local residential committee issued a notice asking whether residents want a vaccine.
The Sichuan and Anhui announcements said that the vaccine, given in two shots, would cost a total of 400 yuan (US$61.24).
Additional reporting by AFP
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