Following the US manufacturer Moderna, the German manufacturer BioNTech has also submitted an application for authorisation of a corona vaccine to the European Medicines Agency. "This application by BioNTech is much more important for the EU because although Moderna produces in the EU, we will receive almost twice as much from the BioNTech vaccine. The European Commission has secured 160 million vaccine doses for Moderna and around 300 million doses for BioNTech. This was stated MEP Peter Liese, health policy spokesman of the largest group in the European Parliament (EPP Christian Democrats). Liese explained that the examination by the European Medicines Agency will take several weeks and asks all parties involved to be patient. "We will see that the UK and the US will probably bring the vaccine to the market in the next few days with the help of an emergency marketing authorisation.
Then many will wonder why this is not happening just as quickly in the EU. The reason is that in an emergency marketing authorisation, only a very rough estimate of the effects and side effects is made and the data is not analysed as precisely as in the conditional marketing authorisation that Moderna and BioNTech have applied for from the European Medicines Agency.
Read more: BioNTech also applies for marketing authorisation
"An incidence rate of around 100 per 100,000 citizens per week can be achieved in a short time if the right measures are taken”, says the health spokesperson of the largest group in the European Parliament, Dr med Peter Liese (EPP, Christian democrats) with regards to the developments in Ireland. "Between the mid- and end-October, Ireland had higher infection rates per 100,000 inhabitants than Germany and many other European countries, but has now arrived at an incidence rate of 100.7. This shows that targeted measures can help and improve the situation. Ireland has introduced a level-model.
The highest level has led to a decrease in infections and these measures in place are stricter than those currently applied in many other European countries. Measures include, for example, to limit the capacity of public transport to 25%. People may only meet one household, however, there are exceptions for those who live alone, need help, or when facing isolation. There is a general obligation to stay in home office whenever possible and the following rules apply to schools: schools remain open, but rather strict restrictions apply especially for students in secondary schools: The distance between students' desks is 2m, between students sitting at the same desk is at least 1m. Distancing rules also apply in elementary school, but are less strict.
Read more: Incidence rate around 100 can be achieved in a short time
MEP Peter Liese, health policy spokesperson for the largest group in the European Parliament (EPP-Christian Democrats), supports the authorisation procedure for vaccines in the European Union. In contrast to the regulation in the USA and the procedure in Great Britain, the European Union will not carry out an emergency approval procedure for vaccines. "The 27 Member States of the European Union would have the possibility to apply for emergency approval in the same way as the UK. This is only possible for the UK, despite Brexit, because of the provision in EU legislation. Any other Member State could do the same, but I do not recommend it.
The European Commission published its pharmaceutical strategy today in Brussels. The strategy will contain many legislative and non-legislative actions for the future pharmaceutical policy, including a revision of basic pharmaceutical legislation and the specific regulation on orphan drugs and paediatrics. Due to the current pandemic, action to address this and future pandemics are of course in the focus of the debate.
The health spokesperson of the biggest political group in the European Parliament (EPP, Christian Democrats) Peter Liese said: “The strategy is important to ensure that our pharmaceutical industry is competitive but moreover that all patients receive the necessary treatment at an affordable price. We need to do a lot for example to make anti-cancer drugs for children more available and affordable. The core of the current debate is how we can be less dependent from China and India when it comes to lifesaving pharmaceuticals. The crisis has shown that the problem that has existed before is getting bigger and bigger.