Volunteers prepared doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at Forand Manor in Central Falls, RI on December 30, 2020.
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The European Medicines Agency Wednesday recommended the Moderna coronavirus vaccine for use in the European Union, at a time when criticism is growing over the slow rollout of jabs across the block.
“The EMA Commission for Medicinal Products for Human Use has thoroughly reviewed the data on the quality, safety and efficacy of the vaccine and, by consensus, recommended that a formal conditional marketing authorization be granted by the European Commission”, the EMA said in a statement.
Emer Cooke, executive director of the Amsterdam-based EMA, added that Moderna’s vaccine “provides us with another tool to overcome the current emergency.” It paves the way for the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, to follow suit.
Moderna’s vaccine is the second to get the green light from European regulators, but vaccinations are already being distributed in the UK and US, where it was previously approved.
Some legislators have expressed concern that the EU is too slow in spreading coronavirus vaccines to its citizens.
The deployment of Covid-19 jabs varies across the block. France reported 516 vaccinations in the first week of the launch, while Germany carried about 240,000 vaccinations on Sunday. The Netherlands has not yet started vaccinating people against the corona virus.
In addition, there are also questions as to whether sufficient vaccines have been purchased by the EU.
A number of officials have asked the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, to explain why it has not bought more injections.
A spokesman for the European Commission said on Monday that the institution was “very focused on ensuring that the implementation of our strategy is done, done well”.
Moderna’s shares rose slightly in the pre-market trade as a result of the announcement.