Ukraine applies for registration of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine

Ukraine has submitted documents for the registration of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID-19.

"Yesterday, February 15, 2021, an application for state registration of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID-19 under the obligation for emergency medical use was submitted to the State Expert Center under Ukraine's Health Ministry," as reported by the Health Ministry's Public Health Center.

On the same day, the World Health Organization (WHO) approved the AstraZeneca vaccine for emergency use and greenlighted its supply worldwide as part of the COVAX (the COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility) Facility.

Read alsoHealth Ministry assures vaccination against COVID-19 to start by weekend – MPThe Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine has previously been approved for emergency use in the UK, European Union, and India.

On January 29, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky enacted Law No. 4613 "On Medicines," which simplifies the procedure for registering and using vaccines against COVID-19 in Ukraine and reduces it to five days.

COVID-19 vaccine for Ukraine

• Ukraine has received information from COVAX on the supply of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines from 2.2 to 3.7 million doses in the first or second quarter of 2021. In addition, the vaccine will be purchased for public funds directly from manufacturers. At least 500,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine are expected to arrive in Ukraine in February 2021.
• Ukraine has signed contacts for the supply of 12 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, which were developed by AstraZeneca (UK-Sweden) and Novavax (the United States) and are produced at the Serum Institute facilities (India).
• The AstraZeneca vaccine is a vector vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and the British-Swedish AstraZeneca company. A complete immunization requires two doses of the vaccine 28 days apart. It can be stored for up to six months at a temperature from +2°C to +8°C.
• COVAX is a global initiative aimed at accelerating the development and production of COVID-19 vaccines and providing to low- and middle-income countries. COVAX supplies only those vaccines that have been included by the WHO in the emergency drug registry.