Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Data On Effectiveness Of Moderna's Vaccine Expected By End Of Month
Politico: Moderna Close To Revealing First Data On Whether Its Vaccine Works
Moderna said Wednesday that it expects to release the first data from the late-stage trial of its coronavirus vaccine in the coming days — which could reveal whether the shot is effective. A spokesperson for the company, which is working with the National Institutes of Health on the vaccine, said that the independent data safety monitoring board overseeing the study will have the data in "days, not weeks." How long their analysis will take is unclear. (Brennan, 11/11)
CNN: Moderna Expects To Know By The End Of The Month Whether Its Covid-19 Vaccine Works
Moderna is conducting a clinical trial of 30,000 participants, with half receiving the vaccine and half receiving a placebo, which is a shot of saline that does nothing. In order for Moderna's vaccine to be considered for authorization by the US Food and Drug Administration, at least 53 study participants needed to become ill with Covid-19. (Cohen and Mascarenhas, 11/12)
The Hill: Fauci Predicts Data From Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine Within A Week
Anthony Fauci expressed confidence Wednesday that positive data from Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine will be announced in the next few days. According to the Financial Times, which hosted the top infectious disease expert at a conference, Moderna will begin assessing data from its phase three vaccine trials “within a week." (Weixel, 11/11)
In other COVID vaccine news —
NPR: Novavax Posts Coronavirus Vaccine Contract That Government Didn't Disclose
A day after Pfizer's announcement that its COVID-19 vaccine is more than 90% effective, rival Novavax shared its $1.6 billion Operation Warp Speed contract on Tuesday. Operation Warp Speed is the Trump administration's crash program to make a vaccine available in record time. While there's been rapid progress on vaccines, the government has been slow to release details of its billions of dollars' worth of deals with manufacturers. Notably, the Department of Health and Human Services told NPR in late August that it had "no records" of the Novavax contract in response to a public records request for it over the summer. The agency announced the deal July 7 to support development, manufacturing and the purchase of 100 million doses. (Lupkin, 11/11)
Reuters: Gates Foundation Adds $70 Million More Funding For COVID Vaccines For Poor
The Gates Foundation added another $70 million of funding on Thursday to global efforts to develop and distribute vaccines and treatments against the COVID-19 pandemic, saying it hoped other international donors would now also pledge more. An extra $50 million will go to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC) led by the GAVI vaccine alliance, the foundation said, and another $20 million to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) which is co-funding development of several COVID-19 vaccine candidates. (Kelland, 11/12)
AP: Atrium Health Aims To Be Early Vaccine Distributor
The CEO of Atrium Health in North Carolina said he anticipates the hospital system will be chosen as an "early site" to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer Inc. Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods said at a board meeting Tuesday that they've already purchased refrigeration units that could store 300,000 doses, The Charlotte Observer reported. (11/11)
Burlington Free Press: University Of Vermont Medical Center Starts COVID-19 Vaccine Trials
Local residents have bravely volunteered to participate in COVID-19 vaccine trials with the hope of helping make things safer for their loved ones. Chief Don Stevens of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk-Abenaki Nation was one of the first to volunteer and said it was important to him to protect Native people who are at increased risk because of the high prevalence of underlying health conditions. (Barton, 11/11)
