The COVID-19 vaccine developed by British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca has been authorized for emergency use in the Philippines, the Food and Drug Administration said Thursday.
AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines are projected to cost P610 for two doses, among the cheapest based on available pricing. The vaccine, developed with the University of Oxford is the second to secure emergency use authorization in the Philippines after Pfizer and BioNTech, Director-General Eric Domingo of the FDA said.
"Based on the totality of evidence available to date, including data from adequate and well-known controlled trials, it is reasonable to believe that the COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca may be effective to prevent COVID-19," " Domingo said.
"It is decided that all conditions for an EUA are present and that the benefit of using the vaccine outweighs the known and potential risks," he added.
Granting an EUA to a vaccine would expedite its availability to the people who need it the most but it is not a license to sell the drugs commercially.
In the case of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippine government is rushing to make vaccines available to the most vulnerable to the virus: medical frontliners, and the elderly.
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AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines are only for those aged 18 and above according to Domingo, noting that it would be administered in two doses at four to 12 weeks apart.
Domingo highlighted that unlike other COVID-19 vaccines that require subzero temperaturs, AstraZeneca's vaccines can be stored at standard refrigerated conditions.
"Mas madali syang ma-transport at i-store sa lugar na pagbabakunahan," Domingo said.
Several local government units have expressed intent to order AstraZeneca vaccines.
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AstraZeneca earlier said that its COVID-19 vaccine has shown "an average efficacy of 70%" in trials. The results ranged between 62% and 90% efficacy depending on the vaccine dosage.
This is lower compared with the efficacy of coronavirus vaccines trialed by rivals Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna which have come in at around 95%, but higher than China's Sinovac which has come in at 50.4% in the latest trial.
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The Philippines has ordered some 17.7 million doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines.