Fauci Says UK's COVID-19 Vaccine Approval Procedure 'Much Less Deep' Than In United States

Fauci Says UK's COVID-19 Vaccine Approval Procedure 'Much Less Deep' Than in United States

US infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci, has said on Friday that the United Kingdom's approval procedure for vaccines against COVID-19 was being conducted in a manner that is "much less deep" than in the United States

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th December, 2020) US infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci, has said on Friday that the United Kingdom's approval procedure for vaccines against COVID-19 was being conducted in a manner that is "much less deep" than in the United States.

The United Kingdom on Wednesday became the first country in the world to give emergency use approval to a candidate vaccine against COVID-19 developed by US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and German company BioNTech. According to Fauci, UK health regulators have gone over the data much more quickly than their counterparts overseas.

"We put the data through a very very stringent process ... The UK has decided to do it a little bit differently. They've gone over it very quickly. And I can say, and this is not a criticism, but they've done it in a way that is much less deep than has been done and is being done by the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] in the United States," Fauci told the UK's Sky news broadcaster.

The US infectious disease expert, who has reportedly been asked to join presumed President-elect Joe Biden's COVID-19 response team, appeared to criticize the UK's approval of the vaccine during an appearance on Fox News on Thursday.

Fauci told the US broadcaster that the UK's rush to approve the vaccine may dissuade people from wanting to be inoculated. He subsequently apologized to the BBC broadcaster later that evening for his remarks, which could have been seen to be a criticism of the UK regulatory process.

During clinical trials, the US-German vaccine has shown to be roughly 95 percent effective at preventing infection.