More Positive Vaccine News
Early data shows that Moderna's vaccine is 94.5% effective. This positive news, released on Monday, follows last week's similarly positive vaccine news from Pfizer. Although mass distribution may still be several months away, health experts see these late stage trial updates as very good news. In this brief post, we cover the Moderna vaccine, the Pfizer vaccine, and the latest on vaccine distribution planning.
The Moderna Vaccine Preliminary Results
According the Moderna's press release today, this vaccine study, known as the COVE study, enrolled more than 30,000 participants in the U.S. and is being conducted in collaboration with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). In the study, the vaccine efficacy was 94.5%, higher than the 90% effectiveness of the Pfizer trials announced last week.
Both vaccine producers, Moderna and Pfizer, are expected to apply for emergency authorization from the FDA to begin vaccinating patients in the next few weeks.
How Would Vaccine Distribution Work?
Officials said the two companies could produce enough vaccine for a little more than 20 million people in the United States by sometime in December, with the first doses going to people with the highest risk, like health care workers, emergency medical workers and frail residents of nursing homes.
The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines far exceeded the Food and Drug Administration’s requirement that coronavirus vaccines be at least 50 percent effective to receive approval.
There are ten other vaccine makers also conducting big Phase 3 trials, including efforts in Australia, Britain, China, India, and Russia. More than 50 other candidates are in earlier stages of testing.
The Latest State of Coronavirus Infections
These results are on par with what health experts have expected, given that every trial takes a certain amount of time to ensure safety and efficacy. The world is anxiously awaiting vaccines.
There have been over 53 million confirmed global cases including over 11 million in the US. Covid-19 is killing more than 1,100 Americans a day over the last couple weeks, and cases continue to skyrocket.
US lawmakers continue to discuss stimulus relief efforts and governors have begun new lockdown measures in many states. See the latest coronavirus infection news and information here.