- FDA Grants Full Approval To Pfizer-Biontech Vaccine
- IMF Realizes Special Drawing Rights Allocation Of 650 Billion Dollars
- Biden Urges Private Companies To Require Their Employees To Vaccinate
FDA Grants Full Approval To Pfizer-Biontech Vaccine
The American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave full approval to the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer of the USA and BioNTech of Germany.
In the statement, the FDA emphasized that Pfizer/BioNTech’s full approval for using the Covid-19 vaccine for the age of 16 and above is an essential milestone in the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic.
“While millions of people are safely receiving Covid-19 vaccines, we recognize that Food and Drug Administration approval is important for some to have additional confidence in the vaccine. Today’s milestone brings us one step closer to changing the course of the epidemic in the United States,” said FDA official Janet Woodcock.
Pfizer announced that it had submitted data from 44,000 subjects in the US, EU, Turkey, South Africa, and South America for full approval of the FDA. The company knew the data was 91 percent effective at preventing infection.
After the company collects data between the ages of 12-15, it will apply to the FDA for full approval for this age group.
According to data from the FDA, 54 percent of those vaccinated in the US to date have received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
IMF Realizes Special Drawing Rights Allocation Of 650 Billion Dollars
International Monetary Fund (IMF) President Kristalina Georgieva announced that the allocation of the reserve currency, called the special drawing right (SDR), to member countries of $650 billion has entered into force.
Regarding the importance of the allocation for the world, Georgieva noted that this is a “unique opportunity” to combat the unprecedented new type of coronavirus crisis.
“The SDR allocation will provide additional liquidity to the global economic system, increase countries’ foreign exchange reserves and reduce their dependence on more expensive domestic or foreign debt,” Georgieva said.
Pointing out that countries can allocate SDRs to support their economies and accelerate their fight against the crisis, Georgieva said that SDRs are distributed to countries in proportion to their quota shares in the IMF.
This means about US$275 billion is going to emerging and developing countries, of which low-income countries will receive about US$21 billion – equivalent to as much as 6 percent of GDP in some cases.
“This SDR allocation is a critical component of the IMF’s broader effort to support countries through the pandemic, which includes: US$117 billion in new financing for 85 countries; debt service relief for 29 low-income countries; and policy advice and capacity development support to over 175 countries to help secure a strong and more sustainable recovery,” was noted by Kristalina Georgieva.
Biden Urges Private Companies To Require Their Employees To Vaccinate
Recalling that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has fully approved the use of the Pfizer-Biontech Covid-19 vaccine, US President Joe Biden invited private companies to impose a vaccination obligation on their employees.
Emphasizing that this step is an “important milestone” in the fight against Covid-19, Biden called on everyone who is waiting for the FDA’s full approval to be vaccinated, “Now is the time to get your vaccine.”
Underlining that the Delta variant is a “dangerous and rapidly spreading” virus, Biden emphasized that this virus is more common, especially in low vaccination rates.
Emphasizing that they have recently introduced a vaccination obligation for federal employees and many states have followed this step, Biden said that this month’s vaccination rates were 56 percent higher than last month.
Underlining that they need to speed up on vaccination, even more, Biden said:
“I will not impose vaccine requirements that will reach millions of Americans. Today, I urge private sector companies to take a step towards the necessity of vaccination and ensure that the vaccine reaches millions of people. If you’re a business leader, a nonprofit leader, a state or local leader who has been waiting on full FDA approval to require vaccinations, I call on you now to do that,” Biden said. “Require it.”
