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The U.K. has purchased a further 60 million doses of BioNTech/Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to support its planned booster program from the fall, the government announced today.
The order brings the total number of doses of the jab bought by the U.K. to 100 million — equivalent to the number of Oxford/AstraZeneca doses it’s purchased.
The U.K. is planning a coronavirus vaccine booster program in the fall with approved jabs to protect the most vulnerable ahead of the winter, the Department of Health and Social Care said in a statement.
“Our vaccination program is bringing back our freedom, but the biggest risk to that progress is the risk posed by a new variant,” said Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
“We’re working on our plans for booster shots, which are the best way to keep us safe and free while we get this disease under control across the whole world,” he added.
A DHSC spokesperson was unable to confirm at this stage whether the BioNTech/Pfizer order would be for doses targeting a new variant of the virus.
The details of the booster program have not yet been announced. The final policy will be informed by advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) and the results of clinical trials studying the use of different combinations of approved COVID-19 vaccines, the DHSC said.
The U.K. has approved three vaccines to date, from BioNTech/Pfizer, Oxford/AstraZeneca and Moderna. Vaccines from Johnson & Johnson and Novavax are being assessed.
The U.K. is currently testing the immune response from mixing boosters. The Com-Cov trial is studying combinations of the approved vaccines, plus one from Novavax.
The news comes after the EU announced earlier this month it was betting big on mRNA vaccines and is in talks to buy another 1.8 billion doses of BioNTech/Pfizer’s jab.
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