New vaccine cheap, easy to distribute

A new COVID-19 vaccine that can be kept in refrigerators, as opposed to frozen storage units, was approved for emergency use Wednesday by officials in the United Kingdom and is just days away from distribution.

The vaccine, which was developed by the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and Oxford University, becomes the second to be authorized by Britain, following one made by Pfizer and BioNTech that was approved earlier this month.

“The vaccination will start next week and we will get to 1 million — and beyond that — [within] a week, v e r y rapidly,” AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot told BBC Radio 4, noting that doses could start to ship as early as Wednesday or Thursday.

Matt Hancock, Britain’s Secretary of State for Health, told Sky News that the rollout of the new vaccine is scheduled to begin Jan. 4.

Officials expect a single dose of the Oxford and AstraZeneca vaccine will provide considerable protection against coronavirus. An initial dose will be given to many in the U.K. who are deemed to be at the highest risk, with a second dose following within 12 weeks.

Early studies indicated the new vaccine is 70% effective, though Soriot expressed confidence to the Sunday Times that it will ultimately work as well as others.

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a vaccine developed by Moderna — both of which are authorized in the United States — have efficacy rates of at least 94%.

AstraZeneca said its vaccine will sell for $2.50 per dose. The low price and simplicity of storage could make it a desirable option throughout the world.

The U.K. has reported more than 2.6 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, and more than 71,000 deaths.

Hospitalizations in the U.K. have recently exceeded the number experienced at the beginning of the pandemic.

A new variant of the virus has contributed to the rise in cases, officials say.