US President Donald Trump announced that the US Food and Drug Administration issued a license for emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine against Corona, stressing that it would be free for all Americans, while the number of people infected with the virus around the world exceeded 70 million.
Trump said in a video posted on Twitter that the United States achieved a medical miracle, describing the arrival of the vaccine as one of the greatest scientific achievements in history.
The US President revealed that the first dose of the vaccine will be given within 24 hours, and that state governors will decide who will benefit from this vaccine first.
He added that the vaccine would save millions of lives and put an end to the pandemic.
He assured the Americans that the vaccine was safe and that experts had studied the results of the experiments and that they met safety standards.
On Friday, US Health Secretary Alex Azar announced that the United States might start on Monday by giving the first batch of Americans the "Pfizer-BioNTech" vaccine against Covid-19.
Assent
The statements of US President Donald Trump came after the US Food and Drug Administration granted permission for the emergency use of the emerging coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine, which is produced by Pfizer and Biontech.
The emergency use authorization paves the way for the start of a mass vaccination program in the United States, which will primarily target health care workers and residents of nursing homes.
"The Food and Drug Administration's authorization for the emergency use of the first vaccine for the Covid-19 virus is a milestone in combating this devastating epidemic that has affected many families in the United States and around the world," said Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn in a statement.
The vaccine is approved for use in people 16 years of age or older, and has a 95% effectiveness rate, according to Pfizer's experience.
A huge logistical operation will be launched immediately in the coming hours, to distribute the vaccine throughout the country.
US President-elect Joe Biden said that his country needs presidential leadership to face the ongoing repercussions of the epidemic, pointing to the registration of 3 thousand deaths due to the virus in one day during this week.
200 million moderna vaccines
Meanwhile, Moderna, a drug and vaccine manufacturer, announced that the United States government had purchased 100 million additional doses of the anti-corona virus vaccine, bringing the quantity it had bought, 200 million doses, so far, in addition to the 100 million doses it had also bought. From a vaccine developed by the Pfizer-Bionic Alliance.
Moderna said in a statement that it will deliver 20 million doses at the end of this month, as part of the first batch of vaccination, and 80 million during the first quarter of next year.
The company also mentioned that it is in the process of manufacturing about 400 million doses, for a number of countries that have concluded contracts with it, including Qatar, Canada and the European Union.
It is reported that 100 million doses are sufficient to vaccinate 50 million people, as the vaccine must be given in two doses in two stages for each person.
The United States hopes to vaccinate 20 million people this month, 100 million by next February, and the entire population by next June.
70 million infected
The number of people infected with the new Corona virus worldwide has exceeded 70 million, according to data collected by American researchers.
About 1.6 million people have died worldwide as a result of complications from the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University figures published Friday evening.
The true number of infections is likely to be higher due to the presence of undetected cases.
The data showed that in the United States, which has the largest number of deaths and injuries, nearly 300,000 people have died, and more than 15.7 million people have contracted the disease.
India and Brazil recorded the second and third highest number of cases, with India recording about 9.8 million injuries, while Brazil recorded 6.8 million.
On Friday, Brazil crossed the threshold of 180,000 deaths from Covid-19, according to the latest report of the Ministry of Health, which indicated that 646 deaths from the virus were recorded during the past 24 hours.
The Korean Agency for Disease Control and Prevention said today, Saturday, that South Korea has recorded 950 new cases of the emerging coronavirus, in a record increase in daily cases of the virus since the first case was confirmed in January.
On Friday, Mexican Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez Gatel said that the Covid-19 health watchdog had approved the emergency use of the Pfizer vaccine for Covid-19.
On the other hand, the World Health Organization called for increased vigilance during the end of the year holidays, while the number of daily deaths from Covid-19 increased by 60% during the past six weeks.