The European Medicines Agency (EMA) gave its authorization on Thursday to the opening of a third dose of the anti-Covid vaccine Vaxzevria, manufactured by the British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, for adults in the European Union. For its part, the giant Pfizer said Monday that its vaccine is effective with three doses for children aged 6 months to 5 years. Only a few hours after this announcement, the American Medicines Agency (FDA), whose decisions are often referred to in the world, decided on a date to examine the authorization of the anti-Covid vaccines from the companies Pfizer and Moderna for the young children: June 15.
The financial ogre Pfizer and its three “safe and effective” doses of vaccine for young children
“Safe and effective”, such are the enthusiastic words of the two laboratories Pfizer and BioNTech in a joint press release published on Monday, reports Le Parisien. For the Pfizer-BioNTech alliance, three doses “administered at three micrograms each” would provide a stronger immune response, with an effectiveness of 80.3% for children aged six months to five years. Le Figaro reports that this dosage would be “ten times lower than that used for adults and adolescents” et would cause side effects usually more “light”.
“We are pleased that our formula for younger children, which we carefully measured at one-tenth the adult dose, was well tolerated and produced a strong immune response”said following these results Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, who is also working on the development of a new vaccine ready to counter potential variants for the fall.
See also: Pfizer boss eyes possibility of ‘multi-variant’ vaccine for fall
Invited to the Davos Forum on Wednesday, the boss of the pharmaceutical laboratory also announced his commitment to sell his vaccines and medicines at cost price to 45 poor countries. An agreement which should ultimately concern 1.2 billion people. “With all that we have learned and accomplished over the past two years, now is the time to begin to further close the gap between those who can access these innovations and those who cannot”did he declare. “We believe that this type of agreement is a very good model”added Bill Gates, head of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
As a reminder, pharmaceutical companies have made more than $1,000 in profits per second, as Le Parisien points out, according to results published by the People’s Vaccine Alliance. The global drug market posted a score of “almost 1,000 billion euros in the world” in 2020, according to the professional body of pharmaceutical companies in France (LEEM), the first five pharmaceutical groups representing nearly 22% of the world market, reported Sud Ouest. Accelerating vaccination in children under five is therefore a financial boon to boost sales for these companies..
AstraZeneca vaccine approved in 3rd dose
“We are going to open the second booster dose for people aged sixty and over”, exclaimed Olivier Véran on RTL on April 7. As for the High Authority for Health, it recommended on Wednesday May 25 the opening of a fourth dose of anti-Covid vaccine in the fall for “the most fragile” in sight “to anticipate the probable resurgence of a variant“. As a reminder, on April 8, in an interview given to the media Brut, Emmanuel Macron declared that he did not rule out the reintroduction of the vaccination pass by next fall if there was again an outbreak of epidemic.
See also: Vaccination pass: Emmanuel Macron announces his possible return “next fall”
The AstraZeneca laboratory therefore got up to speed, announcing on Monday that its anti-Covid-19 vaccine Vaxzevria had been approved as a 3rd dose for adults in the European Union (EU). “Healthcare professionals can now use Vaxzevria as a third dose in patients who have previously received doses of Vaxzevria or a messenger RNA vaccine approved in the European Union”.
The European Medicines Agency gave the green light on Thursday “after a sufficient body of evidence demonstrating an increase in immune response after a third dose of Vaxzevria”according to a statement on the agency’s website.
Still not approved in the United States, the United Kingdom has chosen to conduct its recall campaign as a priority with Pfizer and Moderna serums, reports Europe 1. At the end of April, the Swedish-British laboratory AstraZeneca announced that it had distributed 2.9 billion doses worldwide of Vaxzevria, which has marketing authorization in many countries outside the EU, particularly in Asia and South America. Remember that at the start of its marketing in 2021, post-injection thrombosis tarnished the image of the laboratory. The first cases of adverse reactions linked to inoculations had led several countries such as Denmark, Iceland, Norway and even France to suspend the vaccine, as reported by Le Monde.
Moderna and Pfizer vaccines for under-fives under review by FDA
Following Pfizer in February, the American company Moderna declared on Thursday April 28 that it had filed an application for authorization in the United States to be able to administer its vaccine against Covid-19 to children between 6 months and 5 years old. Only hours after Pfizer announced on Monday that its vaccine was 80% effective in young children, the United States Medicines Agency (FDA), whose decisions are often referenced around the world, decided on a date to review the case: June 15, CNBC reports.
See also: In the United States, Moderna seeks authorization for its vaccine for children under 6, despite insufficient efficacy