The government of the United Kingdom has reportedly entered into talks with numerous pharmaceutical companies over the possibility of receiving early access to modified versions of existing coronavirus vaccines. This move comes as the United Kingdom looks to secure its place as one of the first countries to receive such vaccines, so that it’ll be able to immunize its population against the latest variants of COVID-19 that are plaguing the nation as well as the world at large.
Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, made the following statement during his appearance in the British parliament on Tuesday: “We have confidence that modifications to vaccines, should they be necessary in large scale, will be available more quickly than the original vaccines.”
He went on to remind the nation that the British government was among the first to secure agreements for coronavirus vaccine deliveries, even when it was considered a risky move, and that this government would do so again now that modifications are necessary.
This update comes almost two weeks after it was revealed that Oxford University scientists are working towards modifying their vaccine candidate to protect the population against the new COVID variants hailing from South Africa and the United Kingdom.
