"Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Expected to Launch in UK Before Christmas"... Final Development Stage

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] As Pfizer, a U.S. pharmaceutical company, announced that the COVID-19 vaccine it is co-developing with the German biotech company BioNTech is approaching its final stage, reports from the UK suggest that the vaccine could be released before Christmas, raising expectations for its launch.

According to The Times of the UK, on the 28th (local time), Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, said in an interview with The Times, "Pfizer's vaccine development is in the final stages," adding, "Since it is very important for public health and the global economy, please be patient and wait." The Times cited a senior UK government source, reporting, "Pfizer's vaccine is expected to be approved before the AstraZeneca vaccine," and "It is likely to be distributed in the UK before Christmas."

The Times also added that the UK government has already purchased 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and will use it immediately if clinical trials succeed. Previously, the vaccine co-developed by Pfizer and BioNTech aimed to apply for emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) within this month and to launch before the November 3 presidential election. However, CEO Bourla had stated in a video conference with investors during the earnings announcement that "external expert review will take about a week, making it difficult to launch before the election."

The Pfizer vaccine is currently known to be in Phase 3 clinical trials, with 36,000 of the 42,000 trial participants having already received two doses and awaiting final clinical results. Previously, the U.S., European, and Japanese governments signed supply contracts totaling approximately 450 million doses for this year and next year combined.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.