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As Covid-19 continues its rampant spread around the world, a vaccine cannot arrive fast enough.
Early vaccine development trials are showing some promising results. Currently, there are two vaccines that are being watched with enthusiasm, those made by Moderna and Pfizer.
On Tuesday, Moderna said its vaccine appeared to be 94.5 percent effective, according to preliminary data from the company’s ongoing study.
Hans Pennink / AP
A nurse prepares an injection as part of a study of a possible Covid-19 vaccine, developed by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc.
Last week, Pfizer and BioNTech reported success in their study of the Covid-19 vaccine, with data suggesting that it was 90 percent effective in preventing the virus.
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* Covid-19: the government signs an agreement for the purchase of 1.5 million vaccines
Progress is welcome, but it is still early and there is still a long way to go.
Speaking in Morning report On Tuesday, Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said New Zealand would certainly receive vaccines in the future.
RNZ
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins speaks about the Modern vaccine and Taiwan’s “authoritarian approach” Tuesday morning.
There are about 230 vaccine candidates in development and New Zealand is monitoring all of them, he said.
“We are looking at a portfolio of vaccines, so there will not be a single vaccine for New Zealand.” He said RNZ that several different vaccines are likely to enter the country at different times.
New Zealand has signed a $ 27 million agreement to guarantee Covid-19 vaccines for half the population of COVAX facilities.
It also signed a contract for 1.5 million doses of the vaccine that Pfizer makes. This is enough for 750,000 people, as it is a two-dose vaccine.
This Pfizer agreement is subject to the vaccine successfully completing clinical trials and passing New Zealand regulatory approval.
When the deal was first announced in October, Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods said that, as part of the deal, delivery of vaccines to New Zealand could take place from the first quarter of 2021.
One of the challenges with this particular vaccine is its long-term storage, as it must be kept at -70 degrees Celsius.
Hipkins said authorities were in the process of acquiring the right technology and equipment, such as refrigerators and trucks for transportation, so that when the vaccines arrive here in the future, “we can begin to distribute them as quickly as possible.”
In terms of the Moderna vaccine, Hipkins did not confirm whether New Zealand was ready to receive it, saying that due to commercial sensitivity he could not give details of any negotiations.
On Tuesday, the media asked Hipkins if New Zealanders would have access to the Pfizer vaccine before a Modern vaccine. He said: “You cannot draw those conclusions at this time.”
Jeremy Davidson / AP
This photo provided by Pfizer shows part of a “freezer farm,” a football field-sized facility for storing finished Covid-19 vaccines, that is being built in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
“We’re doing everything we can as a country to make sure we’re there at the front of the queue, you know, potential vaccine prospects.”
Early data shows that Moderna vaccine is easier to store than Pfizer’s because it can be kept at refrigerator temperature for 30 days and can also be stored in long-term freezers.
Moderna has already reached agreements to supply 100 million doses to the United States and 80 million to the European Union, among others.
The Ministry of Health is also working on the development of a sequencing framework to guide the deployment of the vaccines as they become available.
MBIE also approved a payment of $ 2.9 million for Biocell to upgrade its research facility in Papatoetoe, Auckland, to manufacture a possible vaccine for Covid-19.
By Han Guan / AP
Lab workers at the SinoVac vaccine factory in Beijing. The Chinese pharmaceutical company says its Covid-19 vaccine will be ready in early 2021 for distribution around the world.
Vaccine scientist Dr. Helen Petousis-Harris, associate professor at the University of Auckland, said the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines looked good so far. The development of the vaccines was “absolutely revolutionary.”
There was much more to learn, but the developments seemed to have answered a key question: whether it would be possible to make a vaccine.
“The answer is, they work, exactly how well and how long it still has to work,” said Petousis-Harris.
For a vaccine to be used in New Zealand it would have to be approved by Medsafe, which was preparing to evaluate the vaccines New Zealand would be interested in purchasing, he said.
As part of that process, Medsafe would draw on the experience of foreign regulatory agencies, but would also want to do its own assessment.
The work of reviewing which vaccines might be of most interest to New Zealand was the responsibility of the Government’s Covid-19 Vaccine Strategy Working Group.
There were indications that people in New Zealand would start receiving Covid-19 vaccines in the first quarter of 2021, Petousis-Harris said.
Enough vaccines would be purchased for everyone in the country. Distribution would have to be prioritized and the vaccine would become more available as the year progressed.
As far as price is concerned, so far I hadn’t seen any evidence of anyone trying to make big profits from a Covid-19 vaccine. “I don’t think it looks good,” Petousis-Harris said. “Who knows by the track.”
The companies had to cover their costs, but he figured some intended to give up profits for a certain period of time, while some of the vaccines that were being worked on had government investment.
It could be the case that a competitive market for Covid-19 vaccines develops, he said.
