A Covid vaccine developed by Pfizer/BioNtech has been approved for use in the UK.
But how does it compare with other vaccines under development?
Why do we need a vaccine?
The vast majority of people are still vulnerable to coronavirus. It’s only the current restrictions that are preventing more people from dying.
A vaccine would teach our bodies to fight the infection by stopping us from catching coronavirus, or at least making Covid less deadly.
Having a vaccine, alongside better treatments, is “the” exit strategy.
Pfizer/BioNtech vaccine
The big breakthrough came when Pfizer/BioNTech published its first results in November.
They showed the vaccine is up to 95% effective
The UK is due to get 40 million doses
It is given in two doses, three weeks apart
About 43,000 people have had the vaccine, with no safety concerns
The vaccine must be stored at a temperature of around -70C. It will be transported in a special box, packed in dry ice and installed with GPS trackers.
One 2 December, the UK became the first country in the world to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for widespread use.