Philippines approves Moderna vaccine for emergency use

JAKARTA, Indonesia

The Philippines’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday granted emergency use authorization for the coronavirus vaccine developed by US biotech firm Moderna.

It is the seventh vaccine given green light by the FDA to support government's vaccination drive against COVID-19.

“The emergency use authorization was granted by FDA after thorough review by regulatory and medical experts using the currently available published and unpublished data,” FDA Director General Enrique Domingo said in virtual press conference.

The Philippine government inked an agreement with Moderna for 20 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine.

So far, the Southeast Asian nation has ordered 200,000 doses which are expected to be delivered next month.

The country aims to vaccinate up to 70 million people by the end of this year to achieve herd immunity.

The Philippines has recorded over one million coronavirus cases, including 17,800 fatalities.

*Writing by Maria Elisa Hospita from Anadolu Agency's Indonesian language service