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On Thursday, a federal advisory panel recommended the emergency use of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine in the country. The US FDA is expected to approve the drug to kick off a massive nationwide operation to get nearly 3 million doses of the vaccine to hospitals and drug stores across the country. The deputy of the CDC’s vaccine task force, Dr. Anita Patel said, “We’ve been working very closely with our state and local partners to make sure they have plans in place to identify providers that are able to receive, store and use the vaccine”. Point to be noted that the experts voted 17 to 4 in favor of recommending the drug for emergency use for people aged 16 years and older. The US health care workers and nursing home residents will be among the first to get the vaccine.

The CEO of Pfizer, Albert Bourla also praised the decision of the panel. He issued a statement and said, “We are pleased with the strong majority vote, and if the FDA issues an authorization, stand at the ready to bring this vaccine to people in the US in an effort to help combat this devastating pandemic”. However, the FDA isn’t required to follow the panel’s advice. The commissioner of FDA, Stephen Hahn said, “After we receive recommendations, we will incorporate that into our decision”. He also called the endorsement nonbinding. The news came as the coronavirus continues surging across the United States. On Wednesday, the US recorded the most deaths in a single day with over 3,000, and hospitals are nearing capacity in intensive care units.

It is noteworthy that Johns Hopkins University report says more than 300,000 Americans have died from the coronavirus and has sickened at least 15 million people in the United States. A senior CDC official, Dr. Nancy Messonnier said, “Active surveillance systems will be in place to monitor the safety of the first vaccine recipients to track any potential adverse side effects. She said the systems will provide useful information about how the vaccine is affecting different communities. She added, “Understand that vaccine safety and effective monitoring is a top priority for the US government and we’re committed to ensuring that all these systems are in place and ready to go as soon as the vaccine program is implemented”.