Moderna and Pfizer have reported excellent early results from vaccine clinical trials. Vaccines aren’t approved yet, and the rollout will take massive mobilization efforts. An independent safety and data monitoring board reported today that early results from the Moderna Phase 3 clinical trials show the company’s vaccine was 94.5% effective.
That news followed equally positive preliminary results from Pfizer showing that the coronavirus vaccine looks to be safe and more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 transmission. While Phase 3 trials continue, Moderna and Pfizer are expected to ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for emergency approval for their new vaccines later in the coming weeks. Experts predict that approval could come in mid-to-late December.
Pfizer expects to have 50 million doses ready to administer by the end of the year. Given that the vaccine involves a booster shot at the 28-day mark, those doses could protect 25 million people. The company says it aims to produce another 1.3 billion doses in 2021.
Moderna expects to have about 20 million doses of their vaccine ready to ship within the U.S. by year’s end and plans to manufacture and ship about 500 million to 1 billion doses globally in 2021. The Moderna vaccine also requires a booster shot.
Assuming some or all 11 trials pack pan out, UCHealth and the rest of the health care system face a big challenge: distributing, administering, and tracking the vaccinations of billions of people around the world. Experts estimate that assuming no surprises, the general public will be in line for COVID-19 vaccination late in the second quarter or early in the third quarter of 2021 (this assumes that health care workers, essential workers, and those at high risk for the serious disease are vaccinated earlier).
~ Courtesy of UCHealth