COVID-19 Vaccine Latest Update: DCGI to Review Data of Covaxin, Covishield and BNT162b2 on December 9, Says Report
According to a report, the DGCI will review the data of the trial result of all three COVID-19 vaccine candidates on Wednesday i.e. December 9.
New Delhi, December 7: American firm Pfizer, Pune-based Serum Institute of India and Hyderabad-headquartered Bharat Biotech have approached the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for emergency use authorisation of their vaccines against coronavirus (COVID-19). According to a report, the DGCI will review the data of the trial result of all three COVID-19 vaccine candidates on Wednesday i.e. December 9. What is Emergency Use Authorisation Which Moderna, Pfizer Are Seeking For Their COVID-19 Vaccines?
The DGCI, a department of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), is responsible for approval of licences of drugs and vaccines in India. "The Subject Expert Committee at the CDSCO will meet for the first time on Wednesday to review the data of all three vaccine candidates," sources were quoted by News18 as saying. Bharat Biotech has developed Covaxin, India's indigenous COVID-19 vaccine. COVID-19 Vaccine Portal Launched by Union Health Ministry; Has Details About R&D, Clinical Trials of Coronavirus Vaccine; Know More About The Portal.
Covaxin is developed in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Virology (NIV). The Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine maker, has sought government approval for emergency use authorisation of its coronavirus vaccine Covishield, which is developed by the University of Oxford and British drugmaker AstraZeneca.
Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine is named BNT162b2, which has been cleared by the UK and Bahrain. Emergency use authorisation is a mechanism to facilitate the availability and use of medical countermeasures, including vaccines, during public health emergencies. Here it may be noted that Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij, who was administered the first dose of Covaxin last month, has tested positive for COVID-19 last week.
This prompted the company to clarify, "Covaxin clinical trials are based on a 2-dose schedule, given 28 days apart. The vaccine efficacy will be determined 14 days post the 2nd dose. Covaxin has been designed to be efficacious when subjects receive both doses and post the 14 days period after the 2nd dose." (With agency inputs)
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 07, 2020 10:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).