UK to roll out Moderna vaccine

The U.K. will start rolling out the coronavirus vaccine produced by Moderna on Wednesday, making it the third shot in circulation in the country. 

The Welsh government said the vaccine will first be distributed in west Wales and that 5,000 doses are being sent to vaccination centers in the Hywel Dda University Health Board area.

“This is another key milestone in our fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. A third vaccine for use in Wales significantly adds to our defences in the face of coronavirus and will help to protect our most vulnerable,” Welsh Health Minister Vaughan Gething said in a statement.

“Every vaccine given to someone in Wales is a small victory against the virus and we would encourage everyone to go for their vaccine when invited.”

The U.K. is already distributing vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca. The Moderna vaccine’s rollout is happening roughly two weeks earlier than expected.

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he hopes to fully reopen the British economy on June 21 pending the success of vaccine distribution. 

The government announced Tuesday that three in every five U.K. adults have received at least one dose. However, Johnson has had to quell concerns over the AstraZeneca shot while the U.K. drug regulator probes scattered cases of blood clots in adults.