Norway selects seven municipalities to receive country’s first Covid-19 vaccines
Norway expects to receive its first batch of Covid-19 vaccines on December 26th and begin vaccinating the following day.
The timescale was confirmed after the EU Commission gave the green light on Monday to the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for use across the European Union, following approval by the European Medicines Agency.
The EMA's approval paves the way for the roll out of the Pfizer vaccine throughout EU countries and also clears the vaccine for use in Norway and Iceland, which are signed up to the EU's procurement scheme.
Norway will receive an initial batch of 10,000 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) area director Geir Bukholm said at a press briefing.
Seven municipalities -- Oslo, Ringsaker, Hamar, Stange, Sarpsborg, Fredrikstad and Hvaler – will receive the first doses.
The seven were chosen based on current infection rates and logistics, NIPH chief medical advisor Are Stuwitz Berg said at the briefing.
READ ALSO: Norway to give first Covid-19 vaccine doses in Oslo
A second batch of around 35,000 doses is expected to arrive in Norway on December 28th.
Following this, a set number of vaccines will be distributed across the country weekly, with distribution adjusted according to population sizes.
“What we now know is that the distribution plan for the new vaccine is around 40,000 doses per week from the start of January,” Bukholm said.
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The timescale was confirmed after the EU Commission gave the green light on Monday to the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for use across the European Union, following approval by the European Medicines Agency.
The EMA's approval paves the way for the roll out of the Pfizer vaccine throughout EU countries and also clears the vaccine for use in Norway and Iceland, which are signed up to the EU's procurement scheme.
Norway will receive an initial batch of 10,000 doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) area director Geir Bukholm said at a press briefing.
Seven municipalities -- Oslo, Ringsaker, Hamar, Stange, Sarpsborg, Fredrikstad and Hvaler – will receive the first doses.
The seven were chosen based on current infection rates and logistics, NIPH chief medical advisor Are Stuwitz Berg said at the briefing.
READ ALSO: Norway to give first Covid-19 vaccine doses in Oslo
A second batch of around 35,000 doses is expected to arrive in Norway on December 28th.
Following this, a set number of vaccines will be distributed across the country weekly, with distribution adjusted according to population sizes.
“What we now know is that the distribution plan for the new vaccine is around 40,000 doses per week from the start of January,” Bukholm said.
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