The European Medicines Agency (EMA) will issue an opinion on the vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech by December 29 at the latest. If the market permit is granted, vaccinations could start on January 4. Or at least the Dutch are counting on that.
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In a good month, the Dutch estimate that they will be able to start vaccinating. And that is also possible with us. “Everything will have to run very efficiently,” says Ann Eeckhout of the federal pharmaceutical agency FAMHP. “But anyway: the vaccine is getting closer.”
Vaccinologist Pierre Van Damme (U Antwerp) thinks that our northern neighbors have a very tight deadline. “You also have to pay attention to distribution. I would say by mid-January. If we started vaccinating by the end of January, that’s great. ”
The EMA published a timetable on Tuesday because it had received two applications for approval on Monday. In addition to the vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, Moderna also hopes for a positive advice. The deadline for that vaccine has been set on January 12.
That it can go so quickly is because the EMA already has some data on the vaccines during a so-called rolling review received and viewed. If the vaccine is approved, it will be a matter of days before the first person can be vaccinated.
READ ALSO. The Netherlands wants to start vaccinating at the beginning of January
“Production is already underway,” says Eeckhout. According to her, a lot depends on the first delivery time and our strategy. Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom have been ready for some time. We determine that Wednesday. “Logistical steps still need to be taken: transport and storage,” says Eeckhout. “This is not self-evident for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines. They require cooling temperatures of -20 to -70 degrees Celsius. ”
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