Coronavirus: Covaxin approved for emergency use by WHO
Emergency use listing is a procedure to approve vaccines and other products for use during public health emergencies.
Bharat Biotech on Wednesday received the World Health Organization’s emergency use listing for its coronavirus vaccine, Covaxin.
The decision was taken by a technical advisory group of the global health body that met earlier in the day.
Emergency use listing is a procedure by the global health body to approve vaccines and other products for use during public health emergencies. The duration of the emergency use listing process depends on the quality of the data submitted by the vaccine manufacturer.
India had applied to the World Health Organization for emergency use listing for Covaxin in April.
🆕 WHO has granted emergency use listing (EUL) to #COVAXIN® (developed by Bharat Biotech), adding to a growing portfolio of vaccines validated by WHO for the prevention of #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/dp2A1knGtT
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) November 3, 2021
On October 18, the World Health Organization had said that it cannot “cut corners” in deciding to recommend Covaxin for an emergency use listing.
The technical advisory group had on October 26 sought “additional clarifications” from Bharat Biotech to conduct a final risk-benefit assessment for the emergency use listing of the vaccine.
Before Covaxin, the World Health Organization has approved six vaccines from Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca-Oxford, Moderna, Sinopharm, and Sinovac.
The Drugs Controller General of India had granted approval for restricted emergency use to Covaxin in January. Covaxin and Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covishield were the first Covid-19 vaccines to be approved in India.
