UK regulators: People with ‘significant’ allergic reactions shouldn’t take Pfizer vaccine

British regulators warned that people with “significant” histories of allergic reactions shouldn’t take Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine.

The warning came after two people reported adverse reactions on Tuesday, Reuters noted.

“As is common with new vaccines the MHRA [Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency] have advised on a precautionary basis that people with a significant history of allergic reactions do not receive this vaccination,” Stephen Powis, national medical director for the National Health Service, said, according to the news service

“Two people with a history of significant allergic reactions responded adversely yesterday. Both are recovering well.”

June Raine, head of the MHRA, told Parliament that the regulators received reports of two allergic reactions from the vaccine, The Associated Press reported. 

Raine said that clinical studies indicated that the reactions “wasn’t a feature,” according to the AP.

“But if we need to strengthen our advice, now that we have had this experience in the vulnerable populations, the groups who have been selected as a priority, we get that advice to the field immediately,” she said.

The United Kingdom began its mass vaccination campaign on Tuesday, roughly one week after it became the first country to approve the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine.

An independent panel of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will meet on Thursday to discuss the vaccine, and an emergency use authorization is expected shortly after. The agency said in documents published on Tuesday that the vaccine is safe and poses no significant safety risks.