Updated 14 December 2020 at 18:49 IST
German Health Minister urges EU to approve vaccine faster
Germany's health minister expressed impatience Monday that the European Union was still waiting for its regulatory agency to approve a coronavirus vaccine, while other officials urged Germans to forgo Christmas shopping two days before a new hard lockdown will close schools and shut most stores.
- World News
- 2 min read
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Germany's health minister expressed impatience Monday that the European Union was still waiting for its regulatory agency to approve a coronavirus vaccine, while other officials urged Germans to forgo Christmas shopping two days before a new hard lockdown will close schools and shut most stores.
Health Minister Jens Spahn said in a series of tweets that Germany, which has built up more than 400 vaccination centers and has activated about 10,000 doctors and medical staff to start mass vaccinations as early as Tuesday, was hamstrung by the lack of regulatory approval.
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— Jens Spahn (@jensspahn) December 13, 2020
Wir haben als EU die Impfstoffentwicklung erfolgreich unterstützt u uns gemeinsam Impfdosen gesichert. Alle nötigen Daten zu BioNTech liegen vor. UK + US haben bereits Zulassungen erteilt. Eine Prüfung der Daten u die Zulassung durch die EMA sollten schnellstmöglich erfolgen.
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— Jens Spahn (@jensspahn) December 13, 2020
Es geht dabei auch um das Vertrauen der Bürgerinnen und Bürger in die Handlungsfähigkeit der Europäischen Union. Bund und Länder sind ab dem 15.12. in der Fläche einsatzbereit: Erste Impfdosen stehen quasi bereit und könnten direkt nach der Zulassung verimpft werden.
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— Jens Spahn (@jensspahn) December 13, 2020
Jeder Tag, den wir früher beginnen können zu impfen, mindert Leid und schützt die besonders Verwundbaren.
The vaccine developed by Germany's BioNTech and American drugmaker Pfizer has been authorized for use in Britain, the United States, Canada, and other countries, but it's still waiting for approval by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and can therefore not be used in Germany yet.
The EMA has a December 29 meeting on vaccines, but Spahn said the agency's assessment and approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine should "take place as quickly as possible."
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"Every day that we can start sooner with the vaccinations lessens the suffering and protects those who are the most vulnerable," Spahn wrote.
Spahn had previously said that going through EMA approval was the right path.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and the governors of Germany's 16 states agreed Sunday to step up the country's lockdown measures beginning Wednesday and running to January 10 to stop the exponential rise of COVID-19 cases.
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Merkel said existing restrictions imposed in November failed to significantly reduce the number of new infections.
Germany has been hitting records of new daily infections and virus deaths in recent weeks.
In recent weeks, hospitals across the country have repeatedly warned that they were reaching their limits in caring for COVID-19 patients and that staffing on intensive care units was becoming a problem.
On Monday, 4,552 COVID-19 patients were being treated in ICU units, 52% of them on respirators.
On Monday as well, Germany's central disease control center reported 16,362 new confirmed cases — about 4,000 more than a week before.
The Robert Koch Institute reported 188 new deaths, bringing the overall death toll to 21,975.
(IMAGE CREDITS:AP)
Published By : Associated Press Television News
Published On: 14 December 2020 at 18:49 IST