The World Health Organization on Thursday listed the Pfizer / BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, making it the first to receive such status since the pandemic began.
The WHO Emergency Use List opens the door for countries to accelerate their own regulatory approval to import and administer the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine.
The purpose of the procedure, the organization said, is to make medical products such as vaccines available as quickly as possible to deal with public health emergencies, while complying with strict safety and quality controls.
The review of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine found that it met the WHO criteria for safety and efficacy, and that the benefits of using the vaccine to treat COVID-19 outweighed the potential risks.
The United Kingdom was the first western country to authorize the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine.
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