Company also looking to widen eligibility for the vaccine to include pregnant women, children, and others<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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MONDAY, Jan. 11, 2021 (HealthDay News) — A boost in manufacturing should enable Germany’s BioNTech to produce 2 billion doses of its COVID-19 vaccine this year, the company says.<\/p>\n
BioNTech and partner Pfizer developed the first COVID-19 vaccination to be brought to market.<\/p>\n
With three manufacturing sites in the United States and three in Europe operating or starting up soon, BioNTech expects to about double the number of doses available for this fiscal year, according to company CEO and cofounder Ugur Sahin, the Associated Press<\/em> reported. The company is also looking to widen eligibility for the vaccine — which was 95 percent effective in trials — to include pregnant women, children, and others.<\/p>\n As of Jan 10, 32.9 million doses of its vaccine had been shipped, according to BioNTech, the AP<\/em> reported. The vaccine has to be stored at extremely cold temperatures, but the company said it is working on a more stable version for easier use in remote regions.<\/p>\n