The US Food and Drug Administration has granted full approval to the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for people age 16 and older.
This is the first coronavirus vaccine approved by the FDA, and it has already opened the door to more vaccine mandates.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine has been authorized for emergency use in the United States since mid-December for people age 16 and older, and in May, the authorization was extended to those 12 and older.
“The vaccine also continues to be available under emergency use authorization (EUA), including for individuals 12 through 15 years of age and for the administration of a third dose in certain immunocompromised individuals,” according to the FDA.
US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday that approval could encourage individuals to act, and more mandates.
“For businesses and universities that have been thinking about putting vaccine requirements in place in order to create safer spaces for people to work and learn, I think that this move from the FDA … will actually help them to move forward with those kinds of plans,” Murthy told CNN’s Brianna Keilar.
Murthy also noted “a small number of people” have been waiting for full approval before getting their shot and believes “this may tip them over toward getting vaccinated.”
As for the other two companies with authorized vaccines in the United States, Moderna has begun submitting data for approval of its two-dose vaccine, and Johnson & Johnson has not yet submitted data for full approval but expects to do so later this year.
