Covid-19 vaccine: Pfizer, J&J entry could still be months away

US pharma biggies Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna could be amongst the potential gainers of the government’s decision to fast-track approvals for foreign-produced Covid-19 vaccines.


While Johnson & Johnson is keen to enter India and has held preliminary discussions for applying for an emergency approval recently, Pfizer withdrew in February from the race due to regulatory issues.

The rollout from Pfizer and J&J could take a few months as they need to decide their strategy, sources told TOI, adding Pfizer may face issues due to limited vaccine manufacturing capacity.

The mRNA vaccine from Moderna will be months away, with the company being in early talks with

CSIR

for a possible tie-up, according to news reports.

Experts say Pfizer could have the first-mover advantage since it was the first company which applied for emergency authorisation last year in December, provided it has enough doses for India.
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