The World Health Organization (WHO) approved the emergency use of a novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) vaccine developed by the US pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson (J&J) on the 12th (local time).
According to Yonhap News, the WHO said in a statement, “The Corona 19 vaccine Ad26.COV2.S developed by Janssen (J&J) has been put on the emergency use list.” Janssen is a European subsidiary of J&J.
The WHO said, “The wealth of data from large-scale clinical trials shared by the company shows that this vaccine is also effective for older people.”
The J&J vaccine should be stored at -20 degrees Celsius, but can be maintained at 2-8 degrees Celsius for 3 months. The shelf life is 2 years.
The WHO explained that the decision was based on the recommendation of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) the previous day for approval.
“To expedite the listing of this vaccine (emergency use), the WHO and evaluation teams in all regions have adopted a so-called’brief evaluation’ based on the results of the EMA review,” the WHO said.
“WHO will convene next week’s Immunization Advisory Group, the Expert Strategic Advisory Group (SAGE), to make recommendations on the use of this vaccine,” he said.
In addition, WHO announced that it has reserved 500 million doses of J&J vaccines for the COVAX facility, an international project for joint purchase and distribution of Corona 19 vaccines.
WHO Senior Advisor Bruce Aylward said at a video press briefing that day, “We hope to have access to that order by at least July.”
“Every new, safe and effective tool against COVID-19 is another move closer to controlling this pandemic.”
