BioNTech and Pfizer ask European regulator for expedited approval of their COVID-19 vaccine

BERLIN (AP) – The EU drug agency says it may need another four weeks to decide whether to grant its first approval for a coronavirus vaccine, even as authorities in the United States and Britain continued to aim for a green light before Christmas. The European Medicines Agency said Tuesday it plans to convene a meeting by Dec. 29 to decide if there is enough safety and efficacy data about the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech for it to be approved. The agency also said it could decide as early as Jan. 12 whether to approve a rival vaccine developed by American company Moderna Inc. The German pharmaceutical company BioNTech and its U.S. partner Pfizer have said that clinical trials showed their vaccine is 95% effective.