UK Begins World's First COVID-19 Vaccination... First Recipient is 90-Year-Old Woman

"Vaccinations Begin at 70 Hospitals Across the UK"
First Recipient Says "Feels Like Enjoying a Privilege"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy International Desk Reporter] On the morning of the 8th in the UK (local time), vaccinations for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) began. It has been 343 days since the emergence of COVID-19.

According to major foreign media such as The Washington Post on the day, the UK government started vaccinating people aged 80 and over nationwide with the vaccine jointly developed by the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer and the German company BioNTech. Previously, the UK imported 800,000 doses (enough for 400,000 people) of the Pfizer vaccine produced in Belgium and transported them to various hospitals. The UK Health Secretary stated, "Vaccinations have started at 70 hospitals."

The world's first COVID-19 vaccine recipient was a 90-year-old woman named Margaret Keenan. She received the vaccination at 6:31 a.m. at a local hospital in Coventry, Central England. She expressed, "I feel privileged to be the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine," and added, "I want to spend the New Year with my friends and family."

The UK government paid considerable attention to the delivery of the Pfizer vaccine, which requires maintaining an ultra-low temperature of minus 70 degrees Celsius. Not only doctors, nurses, and pharmacists but also volunteers and the British military were mobilized for delivery and vaccination efforts.

The Washington Post (WP) evaluated, "The world is watching how the UK will curb the spread of COVID-19."

Vaccinations are expected to gradually expand worldwide starting this weekend. The United States also approved the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine this weekend, and Europe is expected to begin vaccinations by the end of this month.

So far, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide has reached approximately 67,939,000, with about 1,550,000 deaths.

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