Biotech and blood plasma company CSL today said it may have an H1N1 swine flu vaccine ready by the middle of August.
A statement from CSL said it would help cope with the rapid spread of the virus in its home-state of Victoria.
Melbourne-based CSL is conducting clinical trials on a vaccine after having recently received a $US180 million ($219.5m) order from the US government for the virus antigen. The Australian government had last month ordered supply for 10 million people...
CSL spokeswoman Rachel David said the Australian government may allow vaccinations to start earlier if the pandemic worsened.
Under normal circumstances, CSL would conduct trials over six months to determine the optimal dosage before applying for regulatory approval, but Canberra may circumvent the normal process.
Ms David said: "We want to get to market as quickly as we can because in the southern hemisphere we're in the middle of the winter months.
?Swine flu is a significant problem in Victoria and although it's mild, it's caused some major disruptions to business and other events, so we're moving forward as quickly as we can.?
