Coronavirus vaccine: New guidelines make inoculation more accessible
Some pharmacies and doctors' offices may now store the vaccine which could reduce strain on vaccination centers.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFAn illustrative photo of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved new storage for the COMIRNATY coronavirus vaccine, Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE announced Friday. The vaccine can now be stored for two weeks between -25⁰ C and -15⁰ C.This new guideline is based on recent data collected about the vaccine that the companies say is a testament to their commitment to further developing the vaccine and allowing for more flexible distribution and inoculation procedures.This means that some pharmacies and doctors' offices could store the vaccine which could reduce strain on vaccination centers, the company said.“From the beginning our goal was to make our vaccine broadly available to people around the world," said BioNTech CEO and co-founder Ugur Sahain."This approval by the EMA will enable us to access important additional channels to distribute and administer our vaccine. It comes at an important point in time, as governments now have more flexibility to move from inoculations in vaccination centers to a more decentralized vaccine roll-out through local doctors and general practitioners to accelerate our path out of the pandemic.”"This new storage option in Europe will help make the vaccine even more accessible to people across the continent, another important step as we continue our global fight against this virus,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pfizer, Albert Bourla.
