Thursday, 29 July 2021, 5:39 pm
New Zealand’s medicines regulator Medsafe has given
the provisional green light to the AstraZeneca vaccine,
making it the third Covid-19 vaccine approved for use among
NZ’s adult population.
The viral vector vaccine is
one of four purchase agreements the government has made with
pharmaceutical companies. Associate Health Minister Dr
Ayesha Verrall said the country’s immunisation plan
remains focused on rolling out the Pfizer mRNA
vaccine.
The SMC asked experts to comment on the
news.
Dr Rawiri McKree Jansen (Ngati Raukawa, Ngati
Hinerangi), Clinical Director, National Hauora Coalition,
comments:
“AstraZeneca vaccine approval gives New
Zealand additional opportunities to ramp up our vaccination