Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) released the following statement today after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted an emergency use authorization for Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine:
“This is an historic day for Americans and people around the world. While we still face a dark winter, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
“This vaccine has been carefully reviewed by FDA and independent experts, and I am confident that it will help to save lives. We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the researchers who worked so tirelessly, the clinical trial participants who made this record setting breakthrough possible, and career staff at FDA who worked around the clock to verify the vaccine is safe and effective. I am proud to have worked with my colleagues to provide resources and support for the development, acquisition, and equitable distribution of this lifesaving vaccine, and I am optimistic that other safe and effective vaccines will soon follow.
“Today, we celebrate a victory for science and the human spirit, but our work is not done. Distributing this vaccine, and hopefully others in the near future, will require an unprecedented national effort. While it is good news that the first vaccine has now been authorized, I believe we must now do everything possible to ensure that sufficient doses of the vaccine will be made available, and timely, to all Americans who want it. As the Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, I am determined to work with my colleagues to provide additional resources and support for the efficient and equitable distribution of the vaccine and public education to build trust in the nation’s COVID-19 vaccine program."
