Governor John Bel Edwards and State Health Officer Dr. Joseph Kanter applauded the U. S. Food and Drug Administration’s full approval of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.
“Today’s FDA approval of the Pfizer vaccine, now marketed as Comirnaty, is yet another historic moment in our journey out of this COVID-19 pandemic,” said Governor Edwards.
“This full FDA approval of the first COVID vaccine follows months of clinical trials and millions upon millions of real-world doses safely administered across the globe. This vaccine is well researched, very safe and highly effective at preventing serious COVID illness, hospitalization and death.”
Edwards says he hopes that any Louisianan who was waiting for the FDA approval of the vaccine will take action and get vaccinated.
More than 2.2 million Louisianans have taken at least one dose of the vaccines that are available statewide.
"After an exhaustive review process we are very happy to see the Pfizer vaccine receive full licensure from the FDA. More than 200 million Americans, including 2.2 million people in Louisiana, already have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine," said Dr. Joseph Kanter, State Health Officer.
"The COVID-19 pandemic and our most recent surge have been devastating. To date, we have lost more than 11,900 Louisianans to this virus. Many more people going sleeves up for this life-saving vaccine will protect us against future COVID-19 surges and help us put an end to this pandemic."
Everyone age 12 and older are eligible for any of the available COVID-19 vaccines in Louisiana. The FDA has only authorized one of the three COVID-19 vaccines. The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are still under Emergency Use Authorizations only.
With the FDA’s full approval, those people ages 16 and up are now eligible for the Pfizer vaccine.
COVID-19 vaccines are widely available at 1,437 locations in all of Louisiana’s 64 parishes, including at pharmacies, hospitals, health care clinics, and doctor’s offices.
For a list of locations, visit LDH’s vaccine directory or visit vaccines.gov.
