Joint Statement from the International Coalition of Medicines Regulatory Authorities and World Health Organization

11 June 2021, The global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented level of public interest in vaccines. This includes a focus on the development of vaccines and their regulatory review and safety monitoring.

The joint International Coalition of Medicines Regulatory Authorities (ICMRA) and WHO statement aims to help healthcare professionals answer questions about the role of regulators in the oversight of COVID-19 vaccines.  

The statement explains how vaccines undergo robust scientific evaluation to determine their safety, efficacy and quality and how safety is closely and continually monitored after approval. 

Furthermore, the statement describes rare adverse events of special interest for mRNA vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna COVID.19 vaccines) and for adenovirus vector vaccines (AstraZeneca, Janssen, Gamaleya and CanSino Biologics vaccines) and advises healthcare professionals to closely monitor patients and promptly report suspicious side effects.

The section Questions and Answers on COVID-19 vaccines addresses issues such as rapid but thorough development of COVID-19 vaccines, plurality of candidate vaccines in development, speed of regulatory authorisation, and duration of protection, among others.

See the statement in full: https://www.who.int/news/item/11-06-2021-statement-for-healthcare-professionals-how-covid-19-vaccines-are-regulated-for-safety-and-effectiveness