The first people in the United Kingdom are being administered the new vaccine against Covid-19 on Tuesday.
Hospitals across the UK are ready to start vaccinating the population, with people over 80 years old and health workers getting priority.
The UK has already received around 800,000 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, enough to vaccinated 400,000 people.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) had recommended the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for approval, with the government giving the go-ahead on Wednesday 2 December, making the UK “the first country in the world to have a clinically approved vaccine for supply,” as Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.
The country then received its first batch of the vaccine, which is produced in Belgium, on Friday.
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Hancock dubbed the first day of vaccinations as V-Day and thanked various parties, from the MHRA to nurses and those who volunteered in clinical trials, tweeting “Let’s get this done!”
It’s V-Day. Thank you to everyone who’s made this possible, from @MHRAgovuk clinicians, NHS admin staff, doctors, nurses, everyone who volunteered in the trials & those getting the jab today. Let’s get this done! pic.twitter.com/fDixTMDXip
— Matt Hancock (@MattHancock) December 8, 2020
The first person in the world to receive the vaccine outside of clinical trials was a 90-year-old woman from Northern Ireland, who said “it’s the best early birthday present I could wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the new year after being on my own for most of the year.”
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
