<p>Britain on Friday asked its medicine regulator to assess Oxford University and AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine candidate for temporary supply, a step towards beginning a roll-out before the end of the year.</p>.<p>AstraZeneca expects 4 million doses to be available in Britain by the end of next month, and health minister Hancock is targeting the roll-out to begin before Christmas.</p>.<p>"We have formally asked the regulator to assess the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, to understand the data and determine whether it meets rigorous safety standards," Hancock said in a statement.</p>.<p>"This letter is an important step towards deploying a vaccine as quickly as safely possible."</p>.<p><strong>Also Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/canada-could-approve-pfizers-covid-19-vaccine-around-december-920360.html">Canada could approve Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine around December</a></strong></p>.<p>Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is already assessing the vaccine in a "rolling review" as data comes in on safety and efficacy.</p>.<p>Hancock has also asked the MHRA to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech candidate after it was shown to be 95% effective.</p>.<p>Oxford and AstraZeneca published interim efficacy results on Monday, which showed that the vaccine could be 90% effective when given as a half dose followed by a full dose.</p>.<p>Questions have been raised about the Oxford/AstraZeneca data and the robustness of that result, though the MHRA approved the use of the half-dose/full-dose regime a subgroup received in the trial.</p>.<p>Britain's top science adviser said on Thursday that the interim results showed the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine worked.</p>.<p>"The headline result is the vaccine works and that's very exciting," Patrick Vallance said during a news conference with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said it was up to the regulator to make an assessment.</p>
<p>Britain on Friday asked its medicine regulator to assess Oxford University and AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine candidate for temporary supply, a step towards beginning a roll-out before the end of the year.</p>.<p>AstraZeneca expects 4 million doses to be available in Britain by the end of next month, and health minister Hancock is targeting the roll-out to begin before Christmas.</p>.<p>"We have formally asked the regulator to assess the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, to understand the data and determine whether it meets rigorous safety standards," Hancock said in a statement.</p>.<p>"This letter is an important step towards deploying a vaccine as quickly as safely possible."</p>.<p><strong>Also Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/canada-could-approve-pfizers-covid-19-vaccine-around-december-920360.html">Canada could approve Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine around December</a></strong></p>.<p>Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is already assessing the vaccine in a "rolling review" as data comes in on safety and efficacy.</p>.<p>Hancock has also asked the MHRA to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech candidate after it was shown to be 95% effective.</p>.<p>Oxford and AstraZeneca published interim efficacy results on Monday, which showed that the vaccine could be 90% effective when given as a half dose followed by a full dose.</p>.<p>Questions have been raised about the Oxford/AstraZeneca data and the robustness of that result, though the MHRA approved the use of the half-dose/full-dose regime a subgroup received in the trial.</p>.<p>Britain's top science adviser said on Thursday that the interim results showed the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine worked.</p>.<p>"The headline result is the vaccine works and that's very exciting," Patrick Vallance said during a news conference with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said it was up to the regulator to make an assessment.</p>