Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Other Vaccine News: Pfizer Expands Trials; China Tries Out Nasal Spray
Stat: Pfizer And BioNTech Announce Plan To Expand Covid-19 Vaccine Trial
Pfizer and BioNTech are moving to enlarge the Phase 3 trial of their Covid-19 vaccine by 50%, which could allow the companies to collect more safety and efficacy data and to increase the diversity of the study’s participants. The companies said in a press release that they would increase the size of the study to 44,000 participants, up from an initial recruitment goal of 30,000 individuals.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will have to approve the change before it goes into effect. (Herper, 9/12)
Fox Business: Pfizer CEO Says Coronavirus Vaccine Could Be Distributed To Americans Before Year's End
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said on Sunday that it is a “likely scenario” that the company’s coronavirus vaccine could be distributed to Americans before the new year if it’s proven by federal regulators to be safe and effective. "I cannot say what the FDA will do, but I think is a likely scenario and we are preparing for it," Bourla said in an interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “We started already manufacturing and we have already manufactured hundreds of thousands of doses, so just in case we have a good study readout, conclusive and FDA, plus the advisory committee feels comfortable, that we will be ready." (Manfredi, 9/13)
In other vaccine news —
The Washington Post: GWU Recruits Blacks For Covid Clinical Trial
Mark M. Spradley searched online for a vaccine clinical trial the way most people go shopping. Spradley, heeding an inner call to public duty, combed through the National Institutes of Health’s website and signed up for a trial underway at George Washington University because he was eager to become part of a massive, accelerated effort to develop a vaccine for the novel coronavirus that causes the disease covid-19. (Kunkle, 9/13)
NPR: Why A COVID-19 Vaccine That's Only 50% Effective Could Still Help Stop The Pandemic
As we get closer to a COVID-19 vaccine, it's exciting to imagine a day when the virus is gone. But a vaccine will not be a magic bullet. In fact, it may be only about 50% effective. Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief of the National Institute of Health and Infectious Disease, has tried to set realistic expectations when discussing the importance of a vaccine. "We don't know yet what the efficacy might be. We don't know if it will be 50% or 60%," Fauci said during a Brown University event in August."I'd like it to be 75% or more," Fauci said, but he acknowledged that may not be realistic. (Aubrey, 9/12)
NPR: Why Are So Many Americans Hesitant To Get A COVID-19 Vaccine?
Part of this concern comes from those who feel politics are influencing the processes vaccines must go through. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have told states a potential vaccine may be ready for distribution as soon as late October — right before Election Day. But when speaking with NPR's Mary Louise Kelly, Dr. Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific adviser to Operation Warp Speed, said there is a "very low chance" a vaccine will be ready by then. (9/10)
In vaccine news from China —
The Hill: China Starts Testing Nasal Spray Coronavirus Vaccine
China on Wednesday approved the first phase of human testing for a nasal spray vaccine, the first trial vaccine for the coronavirus that does not require a needle injection. The spray vaccine was co-developed by researchers at Xiamen University and Hong Kong University with the aid of vaccine maker Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise, Bloomberg reported. (Deese, 9/11)
CNN: China Says No Need To Vaccinate Entire Population Against Covid-19 At This Stage, Only Frontline Workers
Not everyone in China will need to get vaccinated against Covid-19, according to the country's top medical official, as Beijing looks to prioritize frontline workers and high-risk populations in a move that underscores rising confidence among policy-makers of their ability to contain the virus. "Since the first wave of Covid-19 appeared in Wuhan, China has already survived the impact of Covid-19 several times," Gao Fu, director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said at a vaccine summit in the city of Shenzhen on Saturday, according to state-run news agency China News Service. (Yeung, 9/14)
