Expanded Vaccinations to Begin in U.K. on Jan. 4: Telegraph

(Bloomberg) -- Oxford and Astrazeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine will be rolled out across the U.K. starting Jan. 4, the Telegraph reports, citing plans that ministers are drawing up. The government is hoping for two million people to get their first dose of the vaccine from Oxford/Astrazeneca or Pfizer and BioNTech SE.

The publication also reported that mass vaccination centers at sports stadiums and conference venues are expected to launch in the second week of January. The Oxford vaccine is easier to store and handle than the one from Pfizer and it’s likely to make it easier to reach people in secluded parts of the country.

Responding to the report, a Health Department spokeswoman told Reuters that the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency will need time to carry out review of the vaccine data.

U.K. residents have already started receiving Pfizer’s vaccination, with the government reporting more than 600,000 people having received the vaccine between Dec. 8-20.

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