Will COVID vaccines lose emergency use authorization when there's no emergency and things reopen?
Whether or not a drug has an emergency use authorization is not dependent on lockdowns or other restrictions. Stores, government offices and schools could all open back up and the emergency use authorization, or EUA, would still be in effect.
Also, manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines are seeking full approval from the FDA meaning that -- if approved -- those vaccines would be on normal regulatory footing for the foreseeable future.
The process is explained on the FDA website, which says in part: "an EUA may remain in effect beyond the duration of the public health emergency declaration."
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, describes the lack of full FDA approval for COVID-19 vaccines as a "technical issue."