It’s been a long wait, but Australia is ready to roll out the first round of Covid-19 vaccines.
The nation’s medical regulator the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has granted provisional approval to the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, with the first vaccines expected to be administered in late February. The vaccine is one of four supported by the Federal Government, and Australia has secured 10 million doses of it.
The vaccine has been approved for people aged over 16 and will be administered in two doses, at least 21 days apart.
Whether by coincidence or a deliberate and symbolic move by the TGA, the approval comes on the one-year anniversary of the first Covid-19 case in Australia.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the TGA’s approval was a step in the right direction.
“I welcome the TGA’s approval of the Pfizer vaccine, with our own Australian experts finding it is safe, effective and of a high standard,” he said in a statement on Monday, news.com.au reports.
“Australians should take confidence in the thorough and careful approach taken by our world-class safety regulator.
“Our priority has always been to keep Australians safe and protect lives and livelihoods. Today’s approval is another big step forward for our community, particularly in the protection of our most vulnerable people.”
Morrison told reporters at a separate press conference: “We are more looking at late February now than mid-February because of the challenges that we have seen in the production and delivery for both AstraZeneca and Pfizer around the world.”
The TGA also released a statement on Monday, saying: “Following a thorough and independent review of Pfizer’s submission, the TGA has decided that this vaccine meets the high safety, efficacy and quality standards required for use in Australia.”
It added that the vaccine “has been shown to prevent COVID-19 however, it is not yet known whether it prevents transmission or asymptomatic disease”.
According to a report in The Guardian, the vaccine rollout will be conducted in five stages. Frontline, health and aged care workers will be the first to be vaccinated followed by adults aged over 70, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged over 55, younger people with an underlying medical condition and high-risk workers in the next phase.
The third phase will include adults aged 50 and up, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people 18 to 54, and other high-risk workers. The fourth phase will include the rest of the adult population and the final phase will include those aged under 16, if recommended.