The European Medicines Agency has recommended granting conditional marketing authorisation for the single-dose Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine, in what is the fourth vaccine approved by the bloc.
The company has committed to deliver 200 million doses to the EU this year with 600,000 pencilled in to arrive in Ireland between April and June.
The ease of administering the vaccine, which can be stored in an ordinary fridge and requires only one dose, has been flagged as a game-changer but a global scramble for doses is putting pressure on supply chains.
“With this latest positive opinion, authorities across the European Union will have another option to combat the pandemic and protect the lives and health of their citizens,” said Emer Cooke, the EMA’s executive director, adding, “this is the first vaccine which can be used as a single dose”.
