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Monday, November 9, 2020

Covid: Have we finally got a coronavirus vaccine?

 

A person holding an ampouleIMAGE COPYRIGHTGETTY IMAGES

The quest for an effective vaccine against Covid-19 has seen a significant step forward, with the announcement of "milestone" results.

Preliminary findings show a vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech can prevent more than 90% of people from getting Covid-19.

What have Pfizer/BioNTech achieved?

They are the first to share data from the final stages of testing - known as a phase 3 trial.

This is a crucial point in vaccine development, where some experimental vaccines will fail.

The vaccine uses a completely experimental approach, which involves injecting part of the virus's genetic code into people, in order to train the immune system.

About 43,000 people have been given the vaccine, and no safety concerns have been raised.

BBC graphic

So when will the vaccine become available?

Pfizer believes it will be able to supply 50 million doses by the end of this year, and around 1.3 billion by the end of 2021.

The UK should get 10 million doses by the end of 2020, with a further 30 million doses already ordered.

Exactly who will be immunised first will depend on where Covid is spreading when the vaccine becomes available and in which groups it is most effective.

The UK has not decided, for example, how to prioritise health and care workers who work with the most vulnerable people, relative to those most at risk if they catch the disease.

In broad terms, the over-80s, care home residents and health or care workers will be near the top of the list.

Age is, by far, the biggest risk factor for Covid, so the older you are, the sooner you are likely to be vaccinated.

Most experts think the vaccine will not be widely available until the middle of 2021.

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