Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Australian COVID Vaccine Trial Stopped
CNN: Australian Covid-19 Vaccine Trials Ended After Test Subjects Return 'False Positive' HIV Results
An Australian produced coronavirus vaccine candidate has been scrapped after trial participants returned false positive test results for HIV, developers announced Friday. The inoculation, which had yet to progress beyond Phase 1 trials, was being jointly developed by the University of Queensland and Australian biotech company CSL. Australia had hoped the vaccine would be available by mid-2021. (Westcott, Watson and Lockwood, 12/11)
Reuters: Australia Halts Local COVID-19 Vaccine Development Due To False HIV Positives
While the vaccine had elicited a “robust” immune response to the novel SARS-COV-2 virus without serious adverse effects in a Phase 1 trial with 216 participants, re-engineering a fix could take another 12 months, they said. (Duran, 12/10)
The Wall Street Journal: Covid-19 Vaccine Candidate Scrapped After False Positives On HIV Tests
The episode illustrates why governments have sought access to multiple vaccines and more doses than needed for their populations. Some vaccines might not prove effective, adverse reactions might arise and manufacturing constraints could limit how many doses can be produced. ... “We can take our time,” Australian Health Department Secretary Brendan Murphy said. “We’re in a good position because we’ve controlled the virus.” (Cherney, 12/10)
