Any new and effective Covid vaccine will be given emergency approval for use in the UK and an expanded workforce will be trained to administer the treatment to enable as much of the population as possible to be immunised quickly, the government has said.
A change in the law will allow the UK regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), to grant temporary approval for a vaccine before it has been given a licence by the European authorities, which is the normal procedure.
Ministers say this will happen only if the vaccine meets the highest safety and effectiveness standards.
The deputy chief medical officer for England, Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, said: “We are making progress in developing Covid-19 vaccines, which we hope will be important in saving lives, protecting healthcare workers and returning to normal in future.
“If we develop effective vaccines, it’s important we make them available to patients as quickly as possible but only once strict safety standards have been met. The proposals consulted on today suggest ways to improve access and ensure as many people are protected from Covid-19 and flu as possible without sacrificing the absolute need to ensure that any vaccine used is both safe and effective.”
The MHRA has the power to grant an unlicensed medicine or a vaccine temporary authorisation where a product is proven to be safe and effective and is in the best interest of the patient on the basis of available evidence.
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A consultation is being launched on Friday, which will last three weeks and look to amend the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, seeking the opinions and advice on the proposals from health experts and key stakeholder groups.
The measures could come into force by October
source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/28/uk-emergency-approval-covid-vaccine-breakthrough
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