COVID-19 vaccine ‘severely politicised’: Pfizer Chief

GENEVA: Albert Bourla, Chief Executive Officer, Pfizer, said that he understands the concernofrace among companies to produce the vaccine first but ensured that no corners are cut. He added that due to the sensitivity of the pandemic, the vaccine production has been ‘severely politicised’, especially in United States of America (USA). Britain has become the first western country to begin mass COVID-19 vaccine campaign using Pfizer-BioNTech version. In light of this, Bourla ensured the people that the vaccine is safe and effective.

Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is one of the vaccine candidates approaching approval in various countries giving the hope to put an end to the pandemic. Bourla said that there are always people who are skeptical about vaccines but most of the assumptions are wrong. It confuses people about who to believe and what to believe as the discussion is happening largely on political rather than scientific terms.

Some people are wary of getting vaccinated, Bourla asked them to think twice before making any decision as this will affect their health as well as the health of people around them. Those who are not vaccinated will become a weak link that will allow the novel coronavirus to replicate again, he added.