Freedom of Information request on the ingredients used in the COVID-19 vaccines (FOI 22/757)
Published 27 March 2023
© Crown copyright 2023
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/freedom-of-information-responses-from-the-mhra-week-commencing-27-june-2022/freedom-of-information-request-on-the-ingredients-used-in-the-covid-19-vaccines-foi-22757
FOI 22/757
29th June 2022
Dear
Thank you for your information request, dated15 June 2022, where you asked for the following information:
“I’d like to request the following information under the Freedom of Information Act.
Please could you send me the full ingredients lists for all covid19 vaccines since 2020”
I am pleased to provide you with the information requested, see below.
A marketing authorisation was granted for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine (Comirnaty) following a European Commission (EC) decision on 21 December 2020 (PLGB 53632/0002). Further information is available on the European Medicines Agency (EMA) website, a link to this is provided below:
https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/comirnaty
A marketing authorisation was granted for the Moderna vaccine on 31 March 2021 following an EC Reliance Procedure (PLGB 53720/0002). Further information is available on the MHRA website and the EMA website, links to these are provided below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulatory-approval-of-covid-19-vaccine-moderna
https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/covid-19-vaccine-moderna
A marketing authorisation has been granted for the Janssen Covid-19 vaccine on 28 May 2021. Further information is available via the below link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulatory-approval-of-covid-19-vaccine-janssen
A marketing authorisation was granted for the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine on 24 June 2021 following an EC Reliance Procedure (PLGB 17901/0355). Further information is available on the MHRA website and the EMA website, links to these are provided below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulatory-approval-of-covid-19-vaccine-astrazeneca
https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/vaxzevria-previously-covid-19-vaccine-astrazeneca
A conditional marketing authorisation was granted for Novavax vaccine on 3 February 2022. Further information is available via the below links.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/novavax-covid-19-vaccine-nuvaxovid-approved-by-mhra
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulatory-approval-of-covid-19-vaccine-nuvaxovid
The list of ingredients in each authorised vaccine are available in the Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPCs) published on the MHRA website. A link to the MHRA portal where you can search for the SmPCs for each of the authorised vaccines is provided below:
If you disagree with how we have interpreted the Freedom of Information Act 2000 with regards to your request, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed. The review will be carried out by a senior member of the Agency who was not involved with the original decision.
If you have a query about the information provided, please reply to this email.
Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.
If you were to remain dissatisfied with the outcome of the internal review, you would have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Please bear in mind that the Information Commissioner will not normally review our handling of your request unless you have first contacted us to conduct an internal review. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Yours sincerely
MHRA Customer Experience Centre