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NEW YORK (REUTERS) – Moderna Inc’s coronavirus vaccine on Friday (Dec. 19) became the second to receive emergency use authorization (EUA) from the US Food and Drug Administration, Good news for a nation with a staggering number of Covid-19 deaths 307,000 lives lost.
Millions of doses of the Moderna vaccine are expected to be added to the US launch, which began this week with healthcare workers.
Seniors in long-term care facilities are next in line for vaccinations, with a panel of experts from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday to recommend which groups to follow, as Industries compete to give their workers priority.
The FDA announced the authorization the day after the agency’s external expert panel endorsed its use and a week after the FDA authorized a vaccine from Pfizer Inc and its German partner BioNTech SE.
The Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine, which is based on similar technology, has been put into the arms of thousands of US healthcare workers this week in a massive nationwide rollout.
“With the availability of two vaccines now for the prevention of Covid-19, the FDA has taken another crucial step in the fight against this global pandemic that is causing large numbers of hospitalizations and deaths in the United States every day,” said the FDA Commissioner Stephen. M. Hahn, MD, said in a statement.
Moderna’s injection is expected to be used in hard-to-reach places such as rural hospitals. The vaccine must be stored and shipped frozen, but does not require the extremely cold temperatures of Pfizer-BioNTech injection.
The speed of vaccine development, less than a year since the first case of the new coronavirus was discovered in the United States, is a surprising scientific success, although there is some hesitation among the public.
“I am hopeful that all Americans will protect themselves by getting vaccinated when the vaccine becomes available to them. This is how our country will begin to heal and move forward, “US leading infectious disease scientist Anthony Fauci said in a statement.
Moderna said it intended to apply for a full US license in 2021.
The FDA’s decision marks the world’s first regulatory clearance for Moderna’s vaccine and validation of its messenger RNA technology, which has been shown to be nearly 95 percent effective without serious safety concerns.
It came less than a year after the first case of Covid-19 was identified in the United States.
The vaccine, developed in partnership with the National Institutes of Health, had relatively minor side effects, such as pain and swelling around the injection site.
The biotech company has worked with the United States government to prepare for the distribution of 5.9 million injections this weekend.
Once thawed, Moderna vaccine can be kept at typical refrigerator temperatures. It is administered in two doses 28 days apart.
Between the two vaccines, the United States expects 40 million doses before the end of the year, enough to eventually vaccinate 20 million people, since both require two injections.
“Brighter days are ahead,” responded US President-elect Joe Biden, who plans to get vaccinated on Monday.
US President Donald Trump on Twitter praised the authorization. “Congratulations, the Moderna vaccine is now available!” he wrote. The vaccine must be transported to hospitals and other facilities before the injections begin.
Moderna said it will deliver roughly 20 million doses to the US government this year and expects to have between 100 million and 125 million worldwide in the first quarter of next year, with 85-100 million from the United States.
Moderna has agreements with the US government to provide a total of 200 million doses by the end of June 2021. Other vaccines are still in testing, including a single shot from Johnson & Johnson and one shot from two. doses of AstraZeneca and Oxford. College.
Hospitalizations and deaths in the United States have increased, fueled by the festive Thanksgiving gatherings last month. Authorities have renewed restrictions and closures across the country.
Public health officials have warned that infections from the Christmas and New Year celebrations could exacerbate a crisis that already threatens to overwhelm health systems across the country.
Even with two highly effective vaccines, it will take practices like social distancing and face covering for months before enough people are vaccinated to slow the transmission of the virus and eventually end the pandemic.
Public health officials have warned of the Christmas and New Year celebrations, concerned that another virus surge could follow the current one that already threatens to overwhelm healthcare systems across the country.
Even with two highly effective vaccines, it will take practices such as social distancing and face covering for months before enough people are vaccinated to slow the transmission of the virus and eventually end the pandemic.
“With strong federal funding for the rapid implementation of vaccines and education, and following the guidance of public health experts to continue wearing masks and keeping our distance, we can bring the end of this pandemic closer,” Barbara Alexander, Director of the Society of Infectious Diseases of America, it said in a statement.
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