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LONDON, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Britain's medical regulator will
be able to grant temporary authorisation for any coronavirus
vaccine that meets safety and quality standards but before it
has received a full licence, under new plans set out on Friday.
The government said that under its proposals the Medicines
and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) would be able
to grant this status to a vaccine while it underwent the full
licensing process, with reinforced conditions to ensure safety.
The move, described as a last resort in the case of a strong
public health justification, means the national regulator will
be able to act this year if a vaccine arrives, before Britain
has fully left the European Union on Dec. 31.
Normally the European Medicines Agency grants a licence for
members of the bloc. The MHRA will have a licensing system in
place from 2021.
"The proposals consulted on today suggest ways to improve
access and ensure as many people are protected from COVID-19 and
flu as possible without sacrificing the absolute need to ensure
that any vaccine used is both safe and effective," England's
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Jonathan Van-Tam said.
The government said it had launched a consultation to
discuss the proposals and that it could be in force by October,
ahead of the winter flu season. The proposals will also allow
more healthcare workers to administer vaccines.
Britain has one of the highest death tolls in the world from
COVID-19 and one of the worst economic contractions of any major
country.
Like many others, it is pinning its hopes on a vaccine to
help bring the pandemic to an end. One of the leading candidates
is from the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, which
believes that trial data could go to a regulator this year.
(Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by Mark Potter)
