First batch of Astrazeneca vaccine expected to arrive in Q2 2021

 

The first batch delivery of AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine to Malaysia is expected to arrive in the second quarter of this year, the pharmaceutical company said.

AstraZeneca Malaysia country president Dr Sanjeev Panchal said the company will continue to fulfil its commitment to provide broad and equitable access to the vaccine at no profit.

"We are working closely with the Malaysian government to help stem the pandemic, enable people to return to normalcy and pave way for the country’s economic recovery," Sanjeev said in a statement released in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

The AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine (AZD1222) was yesterday granted conditional registration approval in Malaysia by the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA), for active immunisation of individuals 18 years and above for the prevention of Covid-19.

Sanjeev said the approval marked another important milestone, following a landmark agreement with the Malaysian government and his firm aims to supply 6.4 million doses of AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine to millions of Malaysians.

He said the approval decision was anchored on rolling submissions which included results of an interim analysis of the Phase III programme conducted by the University of Oxford and published in The Lancet on Dec 8 last year.

He added the Malaysian authorisation is for the two standard dose regimen of AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine, which was shown in the clinical trials to be well tolerated and effective at preventing symptomatic Covid-19, with no severe cases and no hospitalisations of more than 14 days after the second dose.

"Today is a day we have all been anticipating... this conditional registration will provide millions of Malaysians with access to AstraZeneca’s effective, well-tolerated and simple-to-administer vaccine once supply becomes available," he said.

Sanjeev said clinical trials found that it was 100 percent protective against severe disease, hospitalisation and death, more than 22 days after the first dose, where a single dose of the vaccine has an efficacy of 76 percent against symptomatic Covid-19 in the first 90 days after vaccination.

He said vaccine efficacy after the second dose was higher in those with a longer interval, reaching 81.3 percent in those with a dosing interval of 12 weeks or more, and research also indicates that it reduces transmission of the disease by 67 percent.

"The vaccine can be stored, transported and handled at normal refrigerated conditions (two-eight degrees Celsius/36-46 degrees Fahrenheit) for at least six months... it is easily administered within existing healthcare settings," he said.

Sanjeev added that the AstraZeneca Covid-19 Vaccine has been granted authorisation for use in the European Union, United Kingdom, Argentina, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and in Asia such as India, Taiwan, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam as it continues to seek approval worldwide.

- Bernama