COVID-19 vaccines may possibly become commercially available in the Philippines by 2022, according to FDA.
Following the full approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Thursday that COVID-19 vaccines may possibly become commercially available in the Philippines by 2022.
When asked when can the public expect COVID-19 vaccines to become commercially available, FDA Director-General Eric Domingo told GMA News Online that vaccines will become commercially available “possibly early 2022”.
Earlier this week, the Food and Drug Administration granted full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in the United States, making it the first COVID-19 vaccine to receive such approval as health authorities in the US struggled to win over vaccine skeptics. The FDA approved the said vaccine for use in people aged 16 years old and above.
However, in the Philippines, the full approval of the said vaccine will depend on the American drugmaker’s submission of an application for a Certificate of Product Registration (CPR) or market authorization.
READ ALSO: FDA Grants Full Approval To Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine In US
Domingo told Super Radyo dzBB in a previous interview that the vaccine can then be sold not just to the government but also to hospitals, pharmacies, and clinics.
According to Domingo, Pfizer will likely start to seek full approval of its COVID-19 vaccine in other countries. He also said that EUAs (emergency use authorization) will expire after one year and only fully approved products can be used after that.
As of August 25, the Philippines has fully vaccinated 13.37 million individuals, still far from the national government’s target of inoculating more than 70 million people.
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