One-jab covid vaccine gets EU approval

AFP. BRUSSELS The vaccine against the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 from Johnson & Johnson received authorization from the regulator of medicines in the European Union (EU), paving the way for the first single – dose vaccine that could help bolster the slow vaccination campaign the region.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommended that the EU approve the vaccine for people over 18 years of age, according to a statement released yesterday. The European Commission said it will rush to confirm the decision.

The EU bought 200 million doses of the vaccine, with an option to purchase a further 200 million. The commission had previously said that deliveries were expected to start in early April, but authorities are now bracing for delays, two people with knowledge of the process said earlier this week. At a meeting of EU ambassadors on Wednesday, diplomats were informed that J&J has yet to provide a delivery schedule.

The new vaccine could help the bloc beef up its immunization campaign, as it can be stored in refrigerators for long periods – unlike two of the other three vaccines available in the EU – and the logistics of administering a single dose is much simpler. . The vaccine protected all volunteers in clinical trials and prevented their hospitalization and death from Covid-19.

The vaccine is the fourth to be approved in the region after those developed by AstraZeneca Plc and the University of Oxford, Pfizer Inc. and its partner BioNTech SE, and Moderna Inc.