Britain aims to complete “tens of millions” of vaccinations against Covid-19 in the next three months, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday.
Johnson told the BBC, “We really hope we can do tens of millions [of Covid-19 vaccines] I can certainly give you that figure in the next three months, ”he added.
Johnson said this strategy was based on three vaccines, the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine and Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccines – both of which are approved in the UK – and the Moderna vaccine, which would be “soon” ready for use.
Following on from what he said in October last year, the prime minister said, “I thought it would be better by spring. I’ll stick with that. “
When asked about the number of doses of the Oxford / AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, approved by UK regulators on Wednesday, Johnson said 530,000 doses would be ready for inoculation on Monday, in addition to “the roughly million” Pfizer / BioNTechCovid – 19 vaccine has already been distributed.
Earlier on Sunday, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Twitter that the country had administered 1 million Pfizer / BioNTech Covid-19 vaccines, saying that “the end is in sight.”
UK revises vaccine guidelines: Last week, the UK’s Chief Medical Officers issued a revised opinion on the recommended interval between vaccine doses for the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
While UK regulators had previously recommended that a second dose of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine be given three weeks after the first dose, British medical officials this week recommended that it should be given between 3 and 12 weeks after the first dose. Likewise, the second dose of the newly UK-approved Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine can be given 4 to 12 weeks after the first, according to the recommendations.
In a letter to healthcare professionals, the chief medical officers defended their decision to extend the interval period for patients awaiting their second dose of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, saying on Thursday that the decision was based on their assessed balance between risks and benefits. .
The British Medical Association said the move was “extremely unfair” to thousands of at-risk patients across the country.
Pfizer says it has no data to show that just a single dose of its Covid-19 vaccine would protect against the disease after more than 21 days.