9.48 a.m.: Stiko – Clarity soon about the vaccine effect against corona mutation
Reliable data should be available in one to two weeks as to whether the vaccine currently distributed in Germany is also effective against the coronavirus mutation that has emerged in Great Britain. “According to the data available so far, it seems that the vaccine should still work,” said Thomas Mertens, chairman of the Standing Vaccination Commission (Stiko) at the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), on Monday in the ZDF “Morgenmagazin”. Investigations are still necessary, which are currently being carried out by Biontech, the manufacturer of the vaccine, among others. “We think and hope that we will have the results in about a week or two, so that we can then say for sure how it works,” Mertens said.
A new variant of the coronavirus recently appeared in Great Britain, which may be significantly more contagious than the previously known form. Most EU countries then decided to largely restrict travel to and from Great Britain temporarily.