U.K. Approves Covid-19 Vaccine Made by AstraZeneca, Oxford -- 2nd Update
December 30 2020 - 3:08AM
Dow Jones News
By Joseph Walker and Jenny Strasburg
LONDON -- The U.K. authorized a Covid-19 vaccine developed by
the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca PLC, opening the door for
the rollout of millions of doses in a country where infections have
surged amid a more infectious variant of the virus.
The green light represents the third emergency-use approval of a
Western-developed vaccine this month and comes as cases rise
sharply in the U.S. and Europe. A shot by Pfizer Inc. and Germany's
BioNTech SE and one by Moderna Inc. have both been cleared in the
U.S. and are being distributed there.
AstraZeneca's shot -- less effective in clinical trials than its
rivals' injections -- won't be available in the U.S. until the Food
and Drug Administration reviews large-scale trials still being
conducted there and decides to authorize its use.
The U.K. authorization comes as the country battles a new,
potentially more contagious variant of the coronavirus. The mutated
virus triggered travel bans recently on visitors and goods from
Britain, ratcheting up the political urgency for a speedy vaccine
rollout here. Pfizer's shot is already available in the U.K., where
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Dec. 21 that a half million of
the first of a two-dose regimen have been administered.
Scientists have said that the three Covid-19 vaccines authorized
so far should be similarly effective against the new British
variant as they have been in clinical trials, a view AstraZeneca
executives share, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The new variant could be as much as 70% more transmissible than
more established forms of Covid-19, government officials say.
Pfizer has promised the U.K. millions more doses by the end of
the year, but the AstraZeneca and Oxford shot -- made at facilities
in the country and elsewhere -- promises to quicken the rate of
inoculations by the country's state-run health-care system. The
National Health Service will determine which shot to provide people
depending on supply.
In clinical trials, the AstraZeneca vaccine proved to be
significantly less effective in preventing symptomatic Covid-19
than the vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna. But it still exceeded a
key hurdle of 50% efficacy set earlier this year by regulators
including the FDA, established as a benchmark for emergency
authorization to prevent hospitalizations and deaths.
AstraZeneca said Wednesday it will supply millions of doses in
the first quarter of next year, without specifying an exact number.
The U.K. has ordered up to 100 million doses of the vaccine, enough
for 50 million people.
The company said the vaccine will be used for adults 18 years
and older. It didn't provide any further guidance on the age of
recipients or dosing size.
The vaccine provided between 62% and 90% effectiveness against
symptomatic Covid-19, depending on dosage size. Two full doses
about a month apart led to the 62% reading, while a small subset of
trial volunteers who received a lower initial dose followed by a
second standard dose showed a 90% efficacy reading. That subset of
trial participants were all 55 years or younger. Oxford and
AstraZeneca scientists have said they are unsure why that regimen
would be more effective.
The partners previously said they were deferring to regulators
to analyze the combined clinical-trial results and recommend dosage
levels based on the data. The U.K.'s Medicines and Healthcare
products Regulatory Agency is expected soon to provide detailed
recommendations about the vaccine's use.
Write to Joseph Walker at joseph.walker@wsj.com and Jenny
Strasburg at jenny.strasburg@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 30, 2020 02:53 ET (07:53 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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