Federal officials have authorized emergency use of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by Pfizer and BioNTech in a landmark decision that promises to alter the fight against the coronavirus radically in the United States.
The Food and Drug Administration released its letter to Pfizer granting the authorization Friday evening.
"It is nothing short of a medical miracle to have FDA authorization of a vaccine for COVID-19 just over 11 months since the virus was made known to the world," said Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar in a statement. "Vaccines will help bring this pandemic to an end, which is all the more reason to double down on the public health measures we need to stay safe in the coming months."
The FDA's decision, which comes just one day after an advisory panel overwhelmingly offered its endorsement, makes the vaccine the first to obtain a green light for widespread distribution in the United States.
Several other countries have previously granted such an authorization to the Pfizer vaccine — including the U.K., where a sweeping immunization program kicked off earlier this week.
HHS' Azar, speaking with ABC's Good Morning America, said earlier Friday he expects that "we could be seeing people [in the U.S.] getting vaccinated Monday or Tuesday of next week."
In the first push after authorization, the government expects 2.9 million doses of vaccine to go out. Shipments are expected to begin within 24 hours. Government officials have said they'll be able to supply enough doses of vaccine for 20 million people by the end of the year.
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—Colin Dwyer, NPR