Véran said France was on track to begin its first Covid-19 vaccination campaign within seven days, which would involve beginning on a small scale and reserving doses for the most vulnerable people, such as the elderly.
“We will start to give the vaccinations in France on Sunday,” Véran wrote on social media.
Dimanche, nous commencerons à vacciner en France. Les plus vulnérables d'entre nous d'abord, après examen médical, information et recueil du consentement. Un démarrage en douceur, soucieux de la sécurité de tous et respectueux de nos engagement éthiques. @Europe1 pic.twitter.com/VnpVR4G3rt
— Olivier Véran (@olivierveran) December 21, 2020
“First in line will be the most vulnerable, who will undergo a medial text, receive information and give their consent. We will begin slowly, with respect to safety and to our ethical engagements.”
France will have the green light to starts its campaign if the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the European Union’s regulatory body for vaccines and other medicines, approves the vaccine developed by US company Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech later on Monday.
#DYK that EMA needs many detailed studies to confirm that a #COVID19vaccine is safe, provides adequate protection and is of suitable quality?
— EU Medicines Agency (@EMA_News) December 17, 2020
Read about studies needed for #COVID19 vaccines approval:
👉https://t.co/HmsH4NuZ0A pic.twitter.com/S9iNWDgf8t
The EMA’s stamp of approval would put France and other European Union member states on track to start inoculations within a week. The EMA said it would aim to assess another vaccine, developed by US laboratory Moderna, on 6 January.
Véran said the vaccine should be effective against an extra-contagious variant of the new coronavirus whose detection in Britain at the weekend has made for new lockdown measures and travel restrictions.
