Fauci says UK rushed approval of Covid vaccine and vows US will get ‘there very soon’

Matt Mathers
·2 min read
(Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

America's top infectious diseases expert on Wednesday accused the UK of rushing through its approval of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine.

Dr Anthony Fauci, a leading member of America's response to the pandemic, said UK health authorities did not scrutinise vaccine trial data as "carefully" as US officials have been doing.

His comments came after the UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) on Tuesday approved Pfizer/BioNTech's vaccine, meaning Britain is the first western country to green-light the injection.

But Dr Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, suggested that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is conducting a more rigorous review of the jab.

“The way the FDA is ... doing it, is the correct way,” Dr Fauci told Fox News in an interview on Wednesday night.

“We really scrutinise the data very carefully to guarantee to the American public that this is a safe and efficacious vaccine,” he said.

He added: “We have the gold standard of a regulatory approach with the FDA. The UK did not do it as carefully and they got a couple of days ahead."

The Independent has contacted the UK Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) for comment.

Last month some 42 per cent of Americans said they would not get a coronavirus vaccine when one is ready. Dr Fauci said approving vaccines too early could add to fears they are not safe.

“We'll be there. We'll be there very soon,” Dr Fauci said of the US's efforts to approve vaccines.

America has yet to approve any coronavirus vaccine. But FDA chiefs are scheduled to meet with representatives from Pfizer and Moderna on 10 December to discuss the companies' emergency approval applications.

Following Tuesday's approval, the UK's National Health Service will begin rolling out the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine next week, the DHSC said in a statement.

The UK has secured 800,000 doses of the shot, the first of which are already on their way, according to the DHSC.

Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister, and his health secretary, Matt Hancock, described the MHRA approval as "fantastic" news.

Mr Hancock told Times Radio that the UK was able to make a quick decision on approving the vaccine "because of Brexit", comments that were echoed by other Cabinet ministers.

But those claims were quickly rebuked by MHRA chief executive June Raine. She said: “We have been able to authorise the supply of this vaccine using provisions under European law, which exist until the first of January.”

Mr Johnson was later forced to backtrack on his ministers' claims.

“These are global efforts, you’ve got scientists around the world coming together to make this possible. It’s a truly international thing and very, very moving to see,” he told a Downing Street press conference.

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