The Head of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said the agency will move to quickly authorise Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine.
The FDA commissioner said in a statement that regulators have communicated their plans to the pharmaceutical company, which co-developed the vaccine with the National Institutes of Health.
The announcement came after a panel of FDA advisers, in a 20-0 vote, ruled that the benefits of the vaccine outweighed the risks for those 18-years-old and up.
Once FDA’s emergency use authorisation is granted, Moderna will begin shipping millions of doses, earmarked for health workers and nursing home residents, to boost the largest vaccination effort in US history.