E-Paper
Will take Covid-19 vaccine first to ease out safety concerns: Pfizer CEO
“If we have a limited number of doses, I’m not sure if the government would recommend people of my age ... or work capacity to be among the first to get a vaccine. So, I want to respect that,” he added.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla on Monday said that he would like to take the Covid-19 vaccine, in development by the US pharmaceutical giant, first to ease any public concerns about its safety. This comes after the company announced that its vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 for those who had no evidence of previously being infected.
Speaking during an interview with a US channel, Bourla said, “I would very much like to be among the first to get the vaccine but we need to see some ethical considerations. “
“If we have a limited number of doses, I’m not sure if the government would recommend people of my age ... or work capacity to be among the first to get a vaccine. So, I want to respect that,” he added.
“Covid-19 vaccine is likely the biggest medical breakthrough in 100 years when you account for the impact on health and global economy,” Bourla also said.
Earlier in the day, Pfizer announced that early results from its coronavirus vaccine suggest the shots may be a surprisingly robust 90% effective at preventing Covid-19, putting the company on track to apply later this month for emergency-use approval from the Food and Drug Administration.
Also Read | ‘Made me smile from ear to ear’: Leaders hail Pfizer announcement in Covid-19 vaccine development
Meanwhile, Dr Anthony Fauci, the US government’s top-infectious disease expert, hailed the vaccine findings as extraordinary and said, “Not many people expected it would be as high as that.”
“It’s going to have a major impact on everything we do with respect to Covid,” Fauci said.
Based on supply projections, the companies are expecting to supply 50 million vaccine doses globally by the end of this year. Up to 1.3 billion doses will be supplied in 2021.
Since its outbreak last year, the coronavirus disease has wreaked havoc in the world and the global cases exceeded 50 million in a grim milestone on Monday. While the death toll is over 1,255,000.
(With agency inputs)
