EU Agrees Vaccine Delivery Acceleration with Pfizer
Image by CDC/Via Unsplash/https://unsplash.com/license
 -  By  Member State Monitor

EU Agrees Vaccine Delivery Acceleration with Pfizer

The European Commission has agreed with BioNtech-Pfizer to accelerate the delivery of its mRNA vaccine to Member States, starting in a few weeks.

In Q1 of 2022, BioNtech-Pfizer will deliver an additional 20 million vaccine doses with 5 million in January,  5 million in February and 10 million in March. These doses come on top of the already scheduled 195 million doses from BioNTech-Pfizer, bringing the total number of deliveries in Q1 to 215 million.

The EU Commission has also agreed with Moderna on the delivery of additional doses in Q1 of 2022.

This will prove especially helpful for Member States with a short-term need for additional vaccine doses.

In view of the deteriorating epidemiological situation in the European Union over the past months, full vaccination and the roll-out of boosters remain one of the EU’s top health priorities. Taking into account the expected rapid increase in infections due to the Omicron variant, this is now even more urgent than ever.

Countries across the EU are introducing various measure in a bid to fight the latest wave of the pandemic. The Netherlands became the first country to impose a full lockdown on Sunday. In Austria, restrictions have been tightened for those seeking to enter the country without the booster vaccine while in Ireland, a range of new restrictions have been introduced including the closure of all pubs and bars by 8pm.

The Commission continues to work closely with vaccine manufacturers to further accelerate the delivery of vaccine doses to Member States, so that vaccination and boosting can be scaled up over the next weeks and months.

The Commission and Member States have also activated a first option to order over 200 million doses, under the third contract with BioNTech-Pfizer.

This order also covers vaccines adapted to the Omicron variant, should these vaccines become available. By this order, the EU is preparing itself in case adapted vaccines are needed. Deliveries of these over 200 million doses are expected to take place as from Q2 2022.

These doses come on top of the 450 million doses already planned to be delivered in 2022 based on the agreement already signed.

This will bring the total number of deliveries by BioNTech-Pfizer to 650 million doses in 2022.

Image by CDC/Via Unsplash/https://unsplash.com/license

Antoinette Tyrrell is a writer and journalist who started her career in print and broadcast journalism in Ireland. An English and History graduate of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, she worked for 11 years in corporate public relations for Irish Government bodies in the Foreign Direct Investment and Energy sectors.

She is the founder of GoWrite, a business writing and public relations consultancy. Her work has appeared in a range of national and international media and trade publications. She is also a traditionally published novelist of commercial fiction.

newsletter
Join our mailing list and never miss an update !
Ireland’s New Right to Domestic Violence Leave Comes into Force

Ireland’s New Right to Domestic Violence Leave Comes into Force

 - By Antoinette Tyrrell

The right to domestic violence leave commences in Ireland today. Under the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023, anyone experiencing or at risk of domestic violence will be

44% of Irish Workers say Remote Work is Key in Employment Decisions

44% of Irish Workers say Remote Work is Key in Employment Decisions

 - By Antoinette Tyrrell

The results of a survey carried out by Ireland’s Western Development Commission and researchers from the University of Galway, show that 44% of those surveyed would change job, even if

Luxembourg’s PM Accuses Orban of Blackmail

Luxembourg’s PM Accuses Orban of Blackmail

 - By Thomas Falk

Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban once again attracted the displeasure and anger of his EU partners on the second day of the EU summit in Brussels. The head