The European Commission reached an agreement with BioNTech-Pfizer for the supply of four million more doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the Member States in the next two weeks in order to tackle coronavirus hotspots and to facilitate free border movement, according to a press release on Wednesday.
“To tackle aggressive variants of the virus and to improve the situation in hotspots, quick and decisive action is necessary. I’m happy to announce an agreement with BioNTech-Pfizer, who will make available a total of four million doses of vaccines before the end of March which will be supplied in addition to the planned dose deliveries,” said the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
„These vaccines will be offered to the Member States to help in their efforts to keep the spread of new variants under control. These doses will also help restore the free movement of goods and people,” von der Leyen added.
Despite the current reduction in the number of deaths across the EU, due to vaccination of the elderly and most vulnerable people, the Commission is concerned by the development of a series of COVID-19 hotspots across the EU which is caused, by the spread of new variants, which are more contagious.
The BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine has proven highly effective against all currently known variants of the COVID-19 virus.
In order to support EU Member States in their efforts to respond to these developments, the Commission has negotiated with BioNTech-Pfizer the possibility for Member States to order supplementary vaccines doses.
Four million doses in total will be made available for purchase to Member States, pro-rata to their population. The doses will be delivered before the end of March.