On Monday, the fight against COVID-19, especially the delta variant which is still spreading across the nation, might get a boost as the Food and Drug Agency (FDA) could authorize full approval for the Pfizer-NBiotech vaccine, according to the New York Times. The giant pharmaceutical has already applied for it approximately three months ago and is expected to cross the hurdle from emergency use authorization to full approval by next week.
In December 2020, the two-dose vaccine from Pfizer was the first to get emergency use authorization (EUA). Moderna was the next vaccine to get EUA approval followed by Johnson & Johnson’s single dose vaccine. Moderna has also applied for full approval by the FDA.
According to the Times, sources familiar with the matter say that regulators at the FDA are going through the necessary procedures and final negotiations with Pfizer. They are trying to grant full approval by Monday, but it may get delayed if the company does not provide the requisite paperwork required to grant total approval.
The earlier timeline was Labor Day, but the spread of the delta variant has increased the urgency of approval, so that the shots can rollout at a faster pace, sooner rather than later. The nation’s health officials and experts are eagerly awaiting this approval since the pandemic began over a year and a half ago.
A recent poll by the Kaiser Foundation showed that 30 percent among the unvaccinated said that they might get a fully approved vaccine rather than an emergency use approved one.
In case you are wondering why full approval is so important as EUA has been available since December, then some of the reasons are as follows:
- Americans may be more convinced about the safety of the shots as full approval will reiterate its safety.
- Companies and schools can more easily make it a mandatory requirement to get vaccinated before in-person work or classes resume, after it is fully approved.
- Vaccine makers would aggressively market their vaccine directly and people could get private shots.
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