US likely to get Covid-19 vaccine within 2 weeks

Agency: The first Americans to receive a Covid-19 vaccine could get it as soon as 11 December, BBC reported citing the head of the US coronavirus vaccine programme.

Dr Moncef Slaoui told US network CNN that they were planning to “ship vaccines to the immunisation sites within 24 hours” of a vaccine being approved.

The comments come amid a surge in coronavirus cases across the country.

The US has recorded more than 12m cases and 255,000 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

These are the highest tolls registered anywhere in the world.

American pharmaceutical company Pfizer and its partner BioNTech submitted an application on Friday for emergency authorisation in the US of their Covid-19 vaccine.

The vaccine, which requires two doses, has been shown by tests to be 95% effective. Pfizer hopes to produce up to 50 million doses by the end of the year.

According to the BBC, a Food and Drug Administration vaccine advisory committee is set to meet on 10 December to discuss whether to authorise the vaccine.