The European Union is looking at legal means to guarantee the delivery of all the Covid-19 vaccine doses it bought from AstraZeneca and other pharmaceutical companies. The bloc’s executive commission asked Belgian authorities to inspect a factory in Belgium that is part of AstraZeneca’s vaccine production chain. European authorities are under pressure after a sluggish start to the EU’s vaccination campaign in its first month, and the AstraZeneca serum would add much-needed extra supplies. The European Commission also plans new rules strengthening the control of vaccine exports to ensure the doses it bought are delivered to the bloc’s residents. In total, it has ordered up to 400 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine and sealed deals with other companies for more than two billion shots.

Source: Irish Independent January 28, 2021 20:15 UTC