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Britain Becomes 1st Nation to Approve New COVID-19 Vaccine'¯Developed by
Pfizer and BioNTech

VOA News

   Britain has given emergency approval to a new COVID-19 vaccine
   developed by U.S.-based pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, becoming the
   world's first western nation ready to begin mass inoculations against a
   disease that has sickened nearly 64 million people worldwide, including
   more than 1.4 million deaths.

   The government's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority
   granted approval Wednesday for the vaccine, which Pfizer developed
   along with Germany's BioNTech. The first vaccinations will begin next
   week, with staffers of the Britain's National Health Service, nursing
   home residents and staffers expected to receive first priority.

   The approval comes weeks after Pfizer announced the vaccine had been
   shown to be over 90% effective after its final, widespread clinical
   trials. Britain has already pre-ordered 40 million doses of the
   Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

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