Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Pfizer To Provide US With 100M Additional Doses By July
Reuters: Pfizer To Supply U.S. With 100 Million More Covid Shots By July
Pfizer will supply the United States with 100 million additional doses of its Covid-19 vaccine by July next year, the U.S. drugmaker said on Wednesday. The agreement brings the total number of doses to be delivered to the United States to 200 million, allowing for 100 million people to be vaccinated. Pfizer and German partner BioNTech will deliver at least 70 million doses by June 30, with the balance of the 100 million doses to be delivered no later than July 31, the company said. (12/23)
AP: Pfizer To Supply US With Additional 100M Vaccines Doses
Under the nearly $2 billion deal announced Wednesday, the companies will deliver at least 70 million additional doses by June 30, with the remaining 30 million to be delivered no later than July 31. The government also has the option to acquire up to an additional 400 million doses. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement that the latest deal can give people confidence “that we will have enough supply to vaccinate every American who wants it by June 2021.” (LeMire and Alonso-Zaldivar, 12/23)
In other vaccine news —
The Columbus Dispatch: For Pregnant, Nursing Women, Risks Of COVID-19 Outweigh Risk Of Vaccine, Experts Say
Although there's very little data on how pregnant and nursing mothers will respond to a COVID-19 vaccine, professional organizations and individual doctors say the benefits are very likely to outweigh the risks. Pregnant women appear to have the same chance of catching COVID-19 as everyone else. But they might fare worse if they do. According to a November study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, pregnant women are significantly more likely to be admitted to an intensive care unit, to end up on a ventilator, and to die from COVID-19 than women of the same age and health status who aren't pregnant. (Henry and Weintraub, 12/23)
KHN: COVID Vaccines Appear Safe And Effective, But Key Questions Remain
The recent rollout of two newly authorized COVID-19 vaccines is a bright ray of hope at the pandemic’s darkest hour. We now have a path that can lead us to happier times — even as we watch and suffer from the horrible onslaught of new infections, hospitalizations and deaths that mark the end of this regrettable year. (Wolfson, 12/23)
KHN: At Risk Of Extinction, Black-Footed Ferrets Get Experimental COVID Vaccine
In late summer, as researchers accelerated the first clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccines for humans, a group of scientists in Colorado worked to inoculate a far more fragile species. About 120 black-footed ferrets, among the most endangered mammals in North America, were injected with an experimental COVID vaccine aimed at protecting the small, weasel-like creatures rescued from the brink of extinction four decades ago. (Aleccia, 12/23)
