Emergency approval for a covid vaccine - a patient safety concern?

The UK government is seeking views on proposed changes to the Human Medicine Regulations 2012 to help with the safe and efficient distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine and expanded flu vaccine programme in the UK, along with treatments for COVID-19 and any other diseases that become pandemic.

 

Ministers say there will be no shortcut on safety or effectiveness, and that any vaccine will be approved for the UK only if it meets the highest standards.

The deputy chief medical officer for England, Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, said: “If we develop effective vaccines, it’s important we make them available to patients as quickly as possible but only once strict safety standards have been met. The proposals consulted on today suggest ways to improve access and ensure as many people are protected from Covid-19 and flu as possible without sacrificing the absolute need to ensure that any vaccine used is both safe and effective.”

What do you think? Are there patient safety concerns here? We'd love to hear your views. Comment below.

A recent thread on Twitter: