What usually can take decades of vaccine research work has been completed in months through President Trump’s “Warp Speed Initiative Program.” Both U.S. drug companies, Pfizer (with its German BioNTech partner) and Moderna, are now gaining government authorization allowing the release of their two vaccines to the public. A third drug company located in England, AstraZeneca (working with the University of Oxford), has given its less certain preliminary report (at this time). In releasing their partial info, the British company appears to have joined the ranks of our two American pharmaceutical houses issuing possible efficacy levels of 90% or higher, at least in the short term.
In response to the above information, Tom Frieden, the 2009 to 2017 Director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), introduced this in his Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article: “The Vaccine Solution…If We Handle It Right.” He counsels us “But we shouldn’t get ahead of ourselves. Rolling out (a) vaccination (with an astronomical number of our country’s and the world’s dosages needed) is likely to take many months, and the process will be complicated, confusing and almost certainly controversial.” Nevertheless, Frieden emphatically states “Navigating these perils is the key to emerging from our ongoing crisis.”
Pfizer announced their vaccine’s efficacy rate to be 95%, having used 43,538 volunteers, and Moderna issued their efficacy rate, having used 30,000 candidates, as 94.1% for preventing Covid-19. Moderna was also elated to tell the news that their vaccine had a 100% rate of preventing severe cases of the disease.
Speaking in terms of herd immunity, Frieden informs us that if we combined the natural covid immunity of approximately 20-25% of recovered individuals (displaying at least some immunity for at least some time) to possibly only 70% of the public taking a 70% efficacy vaccine, roughly half of society would be protected.
He adds “But a vaccine that is 90% effective…if immunity is confirmed, safe and persistent (and with large numbers of individuals participating)…would be a game-changer.”
Frieden next discusses three very encouraging newer studies of large Covid outbreaks that occurred on a fishing trip, at a summer camp, and through health-care workers’ job exposures. Those individuals, having already developed antibodies from prior exposure to Covid-19, showed strong evidence of resisting new viral infections, while almost all of the other individuals present did test positive or became ill. In fact, the immunity experienced among the first responders appeared strong and seemed to last at least six months.
Frieden states, “The fact that our own immune system appears to work effectively against Covid-19 bodes well for the power of the new vaccines.”
Nevertheless, there are difficult to answer questions about the vaccines that we will be choosing to receive in the near future.
1. How long will our immunity actually last? Studies using the other corona virus cousins over a period of years can provide confusing and varying answers to this question.
2. What are the body’s normal reactions to receiving the Covid-19 vaccine? Minor and unpleasant reactions can occur with all vaccinations being administered to stimulate immunity in our bodies. Frieden explains, “… unpleasant reactions such as arm soreness, a general feeling of not being well, and (possible) fever likely signal a vaccine “take.” These normal reactions will usually occur within the first 36 hours.
3. What are more serious side effects to become aware of? With millions getting vaccinated, it will be difficult to determine any rare but serious adverse effects of taking the vaccine that were not seen in the more limited numbers of tens of thousands lab trial volunteers. Frieden director tells us that we must meet the challenge to determine whether these are strictly coincidental occurrences or actually related to the vaccine.
*Frieden recommends that all medical employees administering the viral shots monitor immediately and continue to monitor difficult situations of overactive immune responses occurring.
**Those possible candidates, having already experienced any strong allergic reactions in the past to vaccinations or insect bites, medicines, or food, are advised to consult with their physicians before taking the vaccines.
*** Frieden adds, “Even if a (excessive) harmful immune reaction occurs in just 1 in 100,000 vaccinated people, it would need to be rapidly identified, and effectively treated …”
4. Can companies manufacture enough safe vaccines in a certain time frame? Frieden answers, “Even in the best-scenario, it will be many months before we have enough vaccine to drive risk down far enough to get life back to some version of normal.”
Part 2 (Next Issue): Steps to Ensure the Timely and Wondrous Arrival of Safe and Effective Vaccines for 2021! Happy Holidays!
