US allows emergency Covid vaccine after White House pressure on FDA

The Pfizer Global Supply manufacturing plant in Portage, Michigan. The US has given the final go-ahead to the nation’s first Covid-19 vaccine (Paul Sancya/AP)

The US gave the final go-ahead on Friday to the nation’s first Covid-19 vaccine, marking what could be the beginning of the end of an outbreak that has killed nearly 300,000 Americans.

Shots for health workers and nursing home residents are expected to begin in the coming days after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorised an emergency rollout of what promises to be a strongly protective vaccine from Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech.