Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Pfizer Vaccine Could Gain Full FDA Approval Within Weeks
The New York Times: The F.D.A. Could Grant Full Approval To Pfizer’s Vaccine By Early September
With a surge of Covid-19 infections ripping through much of the United States, the Food and Drug Administration has accelerated its timetable to fully approve the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, aiming to complete the process by the start of next month, people familiar with the effort said. President Biden said last week that he expected a fully approved vaccine in early fall. But the F.D.A.’s unofficial deadline is Labor Day or sooner, according to several people familiar with the plan. The agency said in a statement that its leaders recognized that approval might increase public confidence and had “taken an all-hands-on-deck approach” to the work. (LaFraniere and Weiland, 8/4)
The Washington Examiner: Fauci Hopes Pfizer Vaccine Will Get Full FDA Approval In Weeks
Dr. Anthony Fauci said he hopes Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine receives full approval from the Food and Drug Administration within the next couple of weeks. Fauci, President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser, appeared on CNN Tuesday evening to react to the news the FDA was speeding up its timetable for giving final approval to the two-dose Pfizer vaccine, aiming to complete the process by the end of the month. (Datoc, 8/3)
CNN: The Unvaccinated Still Think Covid Vaccines Are A Risk, Survey Finds
Just over half of Americans who remain unvaccinated against Covid-19 still believe the vaccine is more dangerous than the coronavirus -- despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, according to a new survey published Wednesday. Unvaccinated adults still also largely believe the news media have exaggerated the severity of the pandemic, and are less likely than vaccinated adults to wear a mask in public, according to the ongoing Kaiser Family Foundation survey. (Fox, 8/4)
The Hill: Majority Of Unvaccinated Incorrectly Believe Vaccine Poses Bigger Risk Than COVID-19: Poll
The KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor released Wednesday found that 53 percent of unvaccinated respondents think getting the vaccine is a bigger risk to their health than the virus itself. Seventy-five percent of people who said they would “definitely not” get the shot think the COVID-19 vaccine is a bigger risk. By contrast, 88 percent of vaccinated respondents said the virus poses a greater threat. The poll results underscore the stark differences between vaccinated and unvaccinated people’s viewpoints on COVID-19 and the vaccine. (Coleman, 8/4)
