Illustration of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
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FRANCOIS GREUEZ / SIPA / SIPA
Johnson & Johnson's vaccine candidate could get the European green light in mid-March.
This serum, the only one to require only one injection, could greatly accelerate the vaccination campaign.
His arrival in France, scheduled for April, corresponds to a period when there will be more arms to vaccinate and doses available.
Can we then hope for a return to life a little more normal for the spring?
If this boost on the vaccination side seems to be emerging, it will not necessarily rhyme with the end of restrictions.
April on the terrace without a mask?
While the contamination figures are worrying and a localized containment has just been decided in the Alpes-Maritimes, the latest information on the vaccination against Covid-19 gives some hope for the spring.
Because April could be the month of acceleration, thanks to various factors.
20 Minutes
explains why.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine in April?
The American laboratory Johnson & Johnson filed Tuesday, February 16, an application for marketing authorization for its vaccine, actually developed by its European subsidiary Janssen.
The European Medicines Agency, which has been studying the documents concerning this serum since December 1, has undertaken to give its response in mid-March.
If it were positive, this vaccine would be the fourth authorized in the European Union, which has ordered 200 million doses, of which 100 million must arrive before June.
For France, 2.7 million doses are normally expected in April.
"The contacts that we had with the laboratory let us think that the first deliveries are expected at best in April, but they did not rule out a delay in May, we qualify the Ministry of Finance.
This does not call into question the deliveries in the second quarter.
"
"Its strength is that it is administered at once," recalls the Ministry of Health.
It is the very first vaccine with this feature, which greatly facilitates its use.
In addition to its low cost, there is no need to juggle agendas to organize a second injection.
Added to this is the fact that it can be transported at - 20 ° C, but can be stored for three months at 8 ° C.
For Mylène Ogliastro, virologist and researcher at INRAE in Montpellier, “clearly, this could be a game-changer.
We must bet on all horses to vaccinate as quickly as possible.
"" Its particularities allow us to be inventive, continues the ministry.
It is likely that it can be administered via various devices.
"
More professionals to vaccinate
Presumably this fourth vaccine, like AstraZeneca, would be available in doctors' offices.
This week, for the first time, around 30,000 GPs will vaccinate in the city.
And more and more doctors, general practitioners and specialists, are expected to volunteer in the coming weeks.
In addition, Olivier Véran announced last Thursday that vaccinations could be carried out by pharmacists from March with AstraZeneca.
This would considerably amplify the campaign, when we know that France has nearly 7,000 pharmacies.
Another boost: the High Authority for Health said it was in favor of nurses and midwives being able to vaccinate.
As long as you have enough doses ...
More doses planned
According to the latest information from the Directorate General of Health, France expects in April 19.3 million doses of Pfizer, 3.2 million Moderna and 9.1 million AstraZeneca.
If all goes well, we could therefore vaccinate 15 million additional French people with it.
And every day, new information comes to modify this calendar.
A study published last Friday, for example, reveals that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine could finally be stored for up to two weeks in a conventional pharmacy refrigerator against five years currently.
What could be a new throttle lever.
We are continually working to make the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine as accessible as possible.
Today we shared new data demonstrating the stability of the vaccine when stored for 2 weeks at time more commonly found in pharmaceutical freezers and refrigerators.
https://t.co/irOQA2v08p pic.twitter.com/lZhpQctZJ0
- AlbertBourla (@AlbertBourla) February 19, 2021
A temporal reorganization?
More arms to vaccinate and more doses to inject.
This is why the schedule provided by the High Authority for Health envisages an opening of the vaccination in the spring to the rest of the adults, without comorbidity, but with a prioritization according to age and profession.
"In April, we will have several vaccines in very large numbers," continues the Ministry of Health.
The challenge for spring is organizational.
"And the health authorities are already thinking about temporal reorganizations to pass the second.
“When we compare with data from other countries, France has a very significant vaccination capacity during the week, analyzes the Ministry of Health.
In April, we will have to mobilize all the levers, and we have room for improvement over the weekend ”
Sufficient to remove restrictions?
Does this mean that we could see the threat of containment in the spring receding?
"As the doses follow, where people are ready to be vaccinated, which remains difficult to assess today, the signals are green for us to reach a significant vaccine level to modify the epidemic curve ", Hopes Mylène Ogliastro.
Which recalls that the models estimated the number of fragile French people compared to the Covid-19 at 15 million.
If hospitals are then no longer under pressure, could the restrictions be eased?
“The Israeli example invites me to be optimistic,” continues the virologist.
Half of the population is now vaccinated there, we can see an inflection of the epidemic curve.
"And an exit from confinement.
But for her, this acceleration of vaccination should not be accompanied by a generalized relaxation, especially with the emergence of new variants.
“In Israel, they vaccinated hard and fast while confined, knowing that the English variant dominated.
We can't let our guard down.
We see that the South African and Brazilian variants developed where the population had a high level of (natural) immunity.
If we really want to block the development of the epidemic, we must maintain at least a curfew and extreme vigilance.
“Especially since there are still doubts about the effectiveness of current vaccines against these variants.
The virologist therefore invites us to show patience (again).
“I hope that by this summer, we can get back to normal life.
But as we have seen, the epidemic situation can change quickly.
In what sense, that will be the challenge for the next few months.
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Covid 19