Europeans vaccinated against Covid-19 with the AstraZeneca drug will be able to travel to the United States in November even though the vaccine is not yet recognized by the US Drug Enforcement Administration, EU Commissioner Thierry Breton told AFP last night in Washington.
Breton's claims come following an announcement by the White House yesterday the lifting of the travel ban from "early November" for all foreigners provided they have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
"This concerns all people who have been vaccinated with FDA-approved vaccines," explained Breton, who coordinates the EU supply of vaccines against Covid, and who met with White House's pandemic coordinator Jeff Zayenz.
"He told me that for the other vaccines, for AstraZeneca in particular, it is up to the health service to decide but he seemed to be positive and optimistic," said Breton.
"What I understood from the discussions we had was that he was convinced that it was the responsibility of the health service but based on the data available (for vaccines recognized by the European health authorities), there was no concern," the European Commissioner explained.
Thierry Breton asked Zayenz about the timetable, and specifically if this permission can be given by November 1, the date of the lifting of the restrictions, as was given a positive indication he said.
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