Category: Covid-19 Vaccine

Novavax (Gaithersburg, Md.) may not be the best-known vaccine developer, but its COVID-19 vaccine offers performance in line with those from Moderna and Pfizer.

Its vaccine was 96.4% effective at preventing COVID-19 caused by the original strain of the virus in a Phase 3 study. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines offered efficacy in the mid-90% range in similar studies.

But the efficacy of the Novavax NVXCoV23 vaccine dipped to 86.3% when it came to protecting against the U.K. variant (B.1.1.7).

Get the full story on our sister site Drug Discovery & Development.

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Novax could have one of the most-effective COVID-19 vaccines - Mass Device

Three different Covid-19 vaccines are now being distributed across the United States, and all three are highly effective at the most important thing: preventing hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19. But some people remain worried that Johnson & Johnsons vaccine is less effective at preventing disease to begin with.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan this week turned down 6,200 Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses for his city. Johnson & Johnson is a very good vaccine. Moderna and Pfizer are the best, Duggan said in a news conference. And I am going to do everything I can to make sure that residents of the city of Detroit get the best.

Scientists say that this is the wrong way to think about Covid-19 vaccines, and that judging the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as inferior based on its lower reported efficacy is misleading.

Such actions are especially worrying at the current stage of the pandemic. Covid-19 has killed more than 500,000 Americans, and while cases seem to be declining, the virus is still spreading, new variants are gaining ground, and some parts of the country are already relaxing precautions (which health officials warn could end up prolonging the pandemic).

Turning down vaccine doses while supplies of all Covid-19 vaccines are still stretched thin undermines the campaign to curb the pandemic.

In clinical trials, the vaccines produced by Pfizer/BioNTech, by Moderna, and by Johnson & Johnson reduced the fatality rate of Covid-19 by 100 percent compared to their placebo groups. They also kept all recipients out of the hospital. That means they can potentially downgrade Covid-19 from a public health crisis to a manageable problem.

The goal of a vaccine was really to defang or tame this virus, to make it more like other respiratory viruses that we deal with, so when you look at the three approved vaccines in the US, all of them are extremely good at that metric, said Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

The vaccines do have some important differences. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is one dose, while the others require two. It also can be stored at refrigerator temperatures, while the others require freezer temperatures. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is also less expensive, about $10 per dose, roughly half as much as the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. The Moderna vaccine costs between $25 and $37 per dose.

These factors give Johnson & Johnson an edge in logistics and could help the shots get to people in harder-to-reach places. Saad Omer, the director of the Yale Institute for Global Health, told Vox last month that its a vaccine that can increase equity.

But when Johnson & Johnson filed for an emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration for its Covid-19 vaccine in early February, it reported that its overall efficacy in preventing Covid-19 cases that produced symptoms was 66.1 percent. The Moderna vaccine and the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines reported efficacy levels around 95 percent.

That gap in efficacy numbers is fueling some peoples perception that the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine isnt as good. However, scientists say that these numbers cant be fairly compared to one another. The efficacy levels of the Covid-19 vaccines are specific to the clinical trials that produced them, and those trials were not conducted in the same ways.

In addition, health officials have been emphasizing that the most important numbers how well the vaccines prevent hospitalizations and deaths are consistent across the board and are arguably more comparable. Even after these vaccines have begun distribution, researchers are finding that Covid-19 vaccines are doing a remarkable job of keeping people alive.

Thats why the recommendation remains that the best Covid-19 vaccine for the vast majority of people is the first one they can get. Thats how I think of these vaccines, as basically interchangeable, said Adalja.

To gauge how well vaccines work, companies test them in several stages, looking to ensure they are safe, to find the correct dose, and to figure out how much protection they provide. These trials are designed to test vaccines individually, not to pit them against each other. So direct comparisons dont always make sense, and one has to be careful to understand the nuances of how each result was obtained.

But health officials have acknowledged that the earlier results of the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines shifted expectations of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

If this had occurred in the absence of a prior announcement and implementation of a 94, 95 percent efficacy [vaccine], one would have said this is an absolutely spectacular result, said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine during the press conference in January.

In phase 3 clinical trials, Covid-19 vaccines were tested against the virus in the real world, in actual people against the actual virus. This involves testing tens of thousands of participants to see who ends up showing symptoms, randomly dividing them into groups that receive the actual vaccine and groups that receive a placebo (without revealing who got what).

Testing in the real world means dealing with all the confounding factors of the real world. Depending on which volunteers are selected and where they are, they face different infection rates of the virus. They have varying access to health care. Some places had stricter lockdowns than others, or started them at varying times, so participants experienced different public health measures. Michigan issued a mask mandate in March 2020 while California issued one in June 2020, for example.

Timing is critical too. The Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech studies finished enrolling participants in their phase 3 trials in October and reported their results in late November. The Johnson & Johnson phase 3 trial only finished enrolling participants in December 2020 and reported their results in January.

That means the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was tested during one of the most severe stages of the pandemic, when transmission, cases, and hospitalizations were at their worst in many places around the world, including the US. The trial also captured efficacy against the new variants of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes Covid-19) which began circulating at this point in some parts of the world. Several of these variants have shown themselves to be more contagious, deadlier, and more likely to evade protection from vaccines and prior immunity.

And Johnson & Johnsons efficacy results included trials in other countries, whereas the results from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech were mainly from US-based participants.

Johnson & Johnson found that vaccine efficacy shifted depending on the country in which it was studied. The vaccine was found to have a 72 percent overall efficacy after four weeks in preventing Covid-19 symptoms in the US. Under the same benchmarks in South Africa, where a coronavirus variant with worrisome mutations that help it escape vaccines has been spreading widely, the company found a 64 percent efficacy.

When it came to preventing severe and critical cases of Covid-19, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was 85.9 percent efficacious in the US, while in South Africa, efficacy against severe and critical disease was reduced to 81.7 percent.

The fact that these vaccines were tested in different ways at different times is why its so hard to make apples-to-apples comparisons. I dont even look at those efficacy numbers and compare them head-to-head like that, Adalja said. Biostats 101: You cannot compare trial results like that unless they were done in a head-to-head fashion.

The huge emphasis on the fact that vaccines prevent hospitalizations and death doesnt mean that preventing the symptoms of Covid-19 is not important. Millions of people in the US have preexisting health conditions and could suffer from the disease even if they dont end up in the hospital. About 10 percent of Covid-19 survivors have reported persistent symptoms even after the virus has faded away, the so-called long haulers. It hints that the disease can cause long-term damage.

And while vaccines can protect an individual, its less clear how well they prevent transmission from person to person (although evidence is mounting that the available Covid-19 vaccines reduce the virus spread). Thats why vaccinated people are encouraged to continue wearing masks until vaccinations are widespread.

An ideal Covid-19 vaccine would reduce deaths, hospitalizations, symptoms, and transmission, and right now, all of the three Covid-19 vaccines available in the US check these boxes, even for people with risk factors for severe disease or long-term illness.

I wouldnt be picky if Im a high-risk person, because being picky may leave you out in the cold of not being vaccinated, said Lawrence Corey, a professor studying virology at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. We have still an incredible epidemic going on here.

There are some people with a history of severe allergic reactions or certain immunological conditions who will have to be careful about selecting a vaccine, and some may not be able to receive one at all. But that makes it all the more important to vaccinate everyone around a vulnerable person, which helps build herd immunity.

The looming concern, though, is how well Covid-19 vaccines will hold up as the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to mutate and new variants arise. Already, vaccine manufacturers are investigating booster doses and modifications of their shots to better counter the newer versions of the virus.

Researchers will also have to figure out how well existing vaccines are holding up against the variants in the real world. While vaccine clinical trials were conducted independently of each other, it would behoove scientists to coordinate from here on out, sharing protocols and pooling data to draw more useful conclusions.

Imagine what will happen when these studies generate results, each with their own populations, eligibility criteria, validation procedures and clinical endpoints, wrote Natalie Dean, an assistant professor of biostatistics at the University of Florida, in Nature. If we dont want our final answers to be a jumble, we must act now to consider how data can be compared and combined.

In the meantime, its important to keep in mind that vaccines are one part of a comprehensive public health response to Covid-19. Social distancing, hand-washing, mask-wearing, testing, tracing, and isolation remain critical to speeding up progress toward the end of the pandemic.

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The best vaccine? Dont be misled in comparing efficacy of Johnson and Johnson, Moderna, and Pfizer/BioNTec - Vox.com

COVID-19 vaccination is an important tool to end the COVID-19 pandemic and reopen the economy.

Vaccines are going to people in phases.See groups vaccinating now. You can get a vaccine at no cost to you.

Submitted to California Department of Public Health on December 8, 2020.

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COVID-19 Vaccine

Community health centers are a national network of safety net primary care providers and are a primary source of care for many low-income populations and people of color. This analysis examines the extent to which early vaccination efforts through community health centers are reaching people of color using data from the federal governments weekly Health Center COVID-19 Survey. Additionally, this analysis may shed light on the Biden administrations recent partnership with health centers to advance equitable access to COVID-19 vaccinations by directly supplying health centers with vaccines. We include data from the survey weeks of January 8 through February 26, 2021, largely before the start of the partnership with the Biden administration.Key findings include:

These early data show that health centers appear to be reaching people of color at a higher rate than overall vaccination efforts. While vaccinations at health centers represent a relatively small share of total vaccinations administered nationally to date, further ramping up health centers involvement in vaccination efforts at the federal, state, and local levels will likely be a meaningful step in reaching people of color and advancing equity on a larger scale.

Early data suggest significant racial disparities in COVID-19 vaccinations, with higher vaccination rates among White people compared to Hispanic and Black people as of early March, based on available state-reported data. The Biden administration has identified equity as a key priority in its national COVID-19 response strategy. One action the administration is pursuing to advance equity in vaccinations is to increase distribution through community health centers. Health centers are a primary source of care for low-income populations and people of color and served nearly 30 million patients in 2019. Given health centers focus on underserved communities and their long-standing role in encouraging and providing immunizations, health centers are generally seen as trusted providers in their communities, especially among people of color.

The Biden administrations initial plans will provide 1 million doses directly to 250 health centers and anticipates eventually opening up direct access to vaccine supply for all health centers nationwide (more than 1,350 health center organizations) as supply increases. Many states and local jurisdictions are also working with health centers to advance equitable access to the vaccine and speed up distribution.

This analysis examines the extent to which early vaccination efforts through community health centers are reaching people of color based on data from weekly surveys of health centers administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). We use cumulative weekly data starting January 8th, 2021 (when health centers began reporting vaccinations in the survey) and ending February 26th (the most recent data available). Most vaccinations reported here were prior to the Biden administration providing vaccines directly to health centers, which began with a limited number of health centers (approximately 25) as of February 15, 2021. This analysis also compares the community health center data to national vaccination data reported by the CDC, total population data, and total community health center patient population data. (See the methods section for more information about the data underlying this analysis).

Among people receiving their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at health centers and for whom race/ethnicity was known, just over half (54%) were people of color, including 26% who were Hispanic and 12% who were Black (Figure 1). Additionally, 10% were Asian, 4% identified with more than one race, and AIAN and NHOPI people made up 2% and 1% of vaccinations, respectively. Race/ethnicity was unknown or not reported for about 20% of health center vaccinations, providing considerably more complete data on race/ethnicity than the national vaccination data reported by the CDC, which is missing race/ethnicity information for 47% of people receiving 1 or more vaccination, but still resulting in gaps in the data.

.The data suggest that people of color represent greater shares of vaccinations at health centers compared to their shares nationally based on data reported by the CDC (Figure 2). For example, Hispanic people accounted for 26% of those receiving their first dose through health centers, while they made up 9% of people who received 1 or more doses administered nationally. Similarly, 12% of people who received their first dose through health centers were Black, while Black people made up 7% of those who received 1 or more doses nationally. However, the ability to draw strong conclusions from these comparisons is limited by differences between the data as well as gaps in the CDC data, including the high share of vaccinations with unknown race/ethnicity and a high share of people reporting multiple or other race.

Health centers appear to be vaccinating people of color at similar or higher rates than their shares of the total population, but data suggest there remain opportunities for health centers to reach more of their patients of color. Health centers reached particularly large shares of Hispanic people relative to their share of the total population. One in four people vaccinated through health centers were Hispanic (26%), while Hispanic people make up 17% of the U.S. population. Both Black and Asian people made up similar shares of vaccinations compared to their share of the population. Black people made up 12% of health center vaccinations and 12% of the U.S. population, and Asian people made up 10% of vaccinations and 6% of the population. These vaccination patterns largely mirror health centers larger role serving patients of color, who made up 63% of patients in 2019. However, the shares of Black and Hispanic people vaccinated through health centers were slightly lower than their shares of the total community health center patient population. This could, in part, reflect that health centers are providing vaccinations to some people who were not existing patients, consistent with state vaccination plans, as well as varying demographic profiles of patients who fall into current priority groups eligible for the vaccine.

The shares of vaccinations going to people of color through health centers have been increasing in recent weeks (Figure 3). Health centers responding to the weekly surveys in January 2021 reported that, among people receiving the 1st dose of vaccinations and for whom race was known, 47% were people of color. In February, the share of 1st doses administered to people of color grew to 56%. Hispanic people experienced the largest growth from January to February (22% vs. 27%), followed by Asian people (7% vs. 11% growth) and Black people (10% vs. 13% growth).

Patterns of vaccinations in health centers by race/ethnicity varied widely by state (Figure 4). For example, Black peoples share of health center vaccinations exceeded their share of the population in 27 states (out of 51 with DC) but was lower than their share of the population in 18 states (6 states had equal shares). Similarly, Hispanic peoples share of health center vaccinations exceeded their share of the state population in 30 states but was lower than their share of the population in 19 states (2 states had equal shares). In most states, the share of vaccinations among Asian people at health centers was lower than their share of the total population. Consistent with the national health center data, the share of health center vaccinations among Black and Hispanic people was smaller than their share of the total health center patients in most states. Conversely, Asian people accounted for a higher share of vaccinations than their share of the patient population in most states. Comparisons to overall vaccinations by race/ethnicity at the state level are limited due to gaps and limitations in overall state-level vaccination data. However, where overall state-level data are available, Black and Hispanic people generally account for smaller share of vaccinations compared to their share of the total population. As such, it is likely that vaccinations through health centers are reaching larger shares of Black and Hispanic people compared to overall vaccinations in many states.

Reflecting their larger role serving and building trusted relationships with communities of color, health centers have been an important place for people, particularly Hispanic people, to receive immunizations in the past. As such, providing COVID-19 vaccines through community health centers may be particularly helpful for vaccinating people of color going forward and could help address some of the racial disparities in COVID-19 vaccination that are emerging. These early data show that health centers appear to be vaccinating people of color at a faster pace than overall vaccination efforts and reaching larger shares of people of color than their share of the state population in the majority of states. In addition, recent growth in the shares of people of color vaccinated in health centers likely reflects more targeted community outreach and efforts to address logistical challenges people of color may face as well as the changing priority groups eligible for the vaccine in accordance with state vaccination plans. However, even among people receiving vaccines at community health centers, there are some disparities in vaccinations, suggesting that there are opportunities for health centers to reach even more people of color.

Although health centers appear to be advancing equitable access to vaccinations, the number of vaccinations administered by health centers remains relatively small. As of February 26, 2021, health centers have reported a cumulative 1.4 million 1st doses and 560,000 2nd doses administered in weekly surveys. However, this is likely an undercount, as between 56% and 72% of health centers have responded to weekly surveys, and those that do not respond are not included in the total vaccination counts for the week. The Biden administrations initial plan to directly supply 250 health centers with 1 million doses of vaccine in the initial phase of the partnership will significantly increase the number of vaccines health centers can administer, but still represents a small fraction of the 90 million doses administered nationally to date and in comparison to the nearly 30 million health center patients in 2019. Further ramping up health centers involvement in vaccination efforts at the federal, state, and local levels will likely be a meaningful step in reaching people of color in greater numbers and advancing equity on a larger scale.

Health center vaccinations are based on 1st dose vaccinations for this analysis. Each week, health centers are asked, By race and ethnicity, how many patients have initiated (1st of 2 doses received) their COVID-19 immunization series in the last week? In separate guidance, HRSA specified that health centers should include vaccinations at the health center, as well as among established patients receiving the vaccination elsewhere, if the health center has records of the immunization.

All findings reported are based on known race/ethnicity. For our calculations, both the Unreported/Refused to Report Race and Ethnicity as well as Non-Hispanic/Latino Ethnicity Patients (Unreported/Refused to Report Race) were defined as unknown race/ethnicity. Hispanic/Latino Ethnicity Patients (Unreported/Refused to Report Race) were categorized as Hispanic individuals for our analysis.

The Health Center COVID-19 Survey reports race/ethnicity differently from most other data sources. White and Black categories only include non-Hispanic individuals, while Asian, AIAN, NHOPI, and more than one race include Hispanic and non-Hispanic individuals. When comparing to population estimates from the 2019 American Community Survey and the Uniform Data System, we adjusted race categories to match the Health Center COVID-19 Surveys race/ethnicity categories. We did not adjust national vaccination tabulations by race/ethnicity from the CDCs COVID Data Tracker.

Vaccination data by race/ethnicity from the CDC are based on administrative data reported to the CDC. However, the health center data are based on vaccinations from weekly surveys beginning in January 2021 with varying response rates. In addition to different data collection methods, it is possible that the health center survey data may also exclude some vaccinations in December 2020. Additionally, the CDC reports data for 1 or more vaccinations administered, while the health center data shown here are based on a 1st dose administered in each week and does not include counts for a 2nd dose.

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Are Health Centers Facilitating Equitable Access to COVID-19 Vaccinations? - Kaiser Family Foundation

We'll show you how to find out about vaccinations in your state.

Registering to get theCOVID-19 vaccinehas become a new chore for millions of Americans hoping to get inoculated against the deadly coronavirus that's gripped the world for a year. (So far, the US has vaccinatedmore than 92 million people.) Although production and vaccinations are ramping up,available spots can be hard to come by, especially in heavily hit cities and states.

If you're not in one of the immediate priority groups eligible for a vaccine in your area, you can add yourself to a standby list for "leftover"coronavirus vaccinesat a given site. Note, this is unused supply that would otherwise be disposed of at the end of the day.

Here's how to find and get spare COVID-19 vaccine doses in your state. Also, here are medical charges you may encounter if you get the vaccine, and what to do about them.

Read more: COVID-19 immunity: How long does it last and what is 'natural' protection?

Dr. B is a new service that will help match spare vaccines to people in your area. If you can't seem to get an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccine, visit the Dr. B site. From there, click the button that says I want the COVID vaccine and enter your phone number. Go to the next step and enter the verification code sent to your phone. For the next step, you'll need to enter your full name, ZIP code, date of birth and email address.

Once that step is complete, you'll check off any health conditions you have -- for example, asthma, kidney disease or pregnancy. If none of those apply to you, tap the Next Step button. Next, the website will ask you to select your occupation, followed by if you live in a group home or long-term facility. Once all the questions are answered, tap Submit Registration and you're all set. If you're chosen, you'll be informed of where to go to get your vaccination, and what time to be there.

Keep track of the coronavirus pandemic.

To track the number of COVID-19 vaccines distributed in your state, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's COVID data tracker webpage (it works best if you use a desktop browser). Here, you'll see a map of the US -- move your cursor over each state to see total doses administered, doses distributed, people who have received one or more doses and people who have received both doses.

Now playing: Watch this: Will a COVID-19 vaccine be a triumph of science or soul-searching?

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Currently, there are three vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration in the US: Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. Currently, Pfizer has been more widely administered, with more than 46.8 million shots given. Moderna, which was approved after Pfizer, is at more than 44.9 million doses administered. Johnson & Johnson is just over 208,000. Over 120,000 doses administered haven't yet been identified.

For more information about the COVID-19 vaccine, here's why you should continue to wear a mask, even after getting the vaccine. Also, your employer can require you to get the COVID-19 vaccine and here's the priority order for who gets the vaccine first.

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

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Looking for a COVID-19 vaccine? How to find a spare dose where you live - CNET

COVID-19 vaccine safety: Trust the facts These Phase 1 and Phase 2 groups can now get the vaccine: People age 75 and older People age 65-74 People with 2+ certain medical conditions Low income and affordable senior housing residents & staff Health care workers Long term care settings First responders Congregate care settings Effective 3/11/21 ...

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COVID-19 Vaccine | Mass.gov

Northwell Health, which administered the vaccine, donated the vial from intensive care unit nurse Sandra Lindsay's Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination.

Along with Lindsay's vaccine vial, the Smithsonian received vials from other Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. It also received syringes, diluents, and vaccination records related to the administration process.

Northwell also gifted the Smithsonian artifacts involved in the shipping process of the vaccines and objects that helped maintain and monitor its temperature.

"Dec. 14 was a historic moment for all: the day the very first COVID-19 vaccine was administered in the United States," said Michael Dowling, president and CEO of Northwell Health, according to a Smithsonian news release.

"It was our first real sign of hope after so many dark months in the fight against the global pandemic. ... But when Sandra Lindsay rolled up her sleeve, we weren't just showing our team members the safety and efficacy of this groundbreaking vaccine -- we were telling the world that our country was beginning a new fight back to normalcy. It was an extraordinary moment, and I thank the Smithsonian for preserving this important milestone," Dowling said.

"The urgent need for effective vaccines in the U.S. was met with unprecedented speed and emergency review and approval," said Anthea M. Hartig, the museum's Elizabeth MacMillan director, according to the Smithsonian release.

"These now historic artifacts document not only this remarkable scientific progress but represent the hope offered to millions living through the cascading crises brought on by COVID-19."

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Smithsonian receives vial from the first Covid-19 vaccine dose administered in the US - CNN

With thousands more eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, here's what to do when you are  WWMT-TV

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With thousands more eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, here's what to do when you are - WWMT-TV

A three-tiered approach to address barriers to COVID-19 vaccine delivery in the Black community  The Lancet

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A three-tiered approach to address barriers to COVID-19 vaccine delivery in the Black community - The Lancet

Drugmakers are crafting Covid-19 vaccines that would target more than one strain of the virus, hoping to strengthen the immunization campaign against the pathogen as it evolves.

Researchers at Moderna Inc., Novavax Inc. and the University of Oxford are designing the shots, known as multivalent vaccines, to protect not only against the form of the virus commonly circulating globally but also potentially contagious strains that have emerged or might in the future.

The work belongs to a range of efforts vaccine makers and drug researchers are undertaking to get ahead of variants like the one identified in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil.

Research indicates some vaccines currently in use generate weaker immune responses against the strain found in South Africa in particular, though there isnt evidence indicating that current vaccines dont protect against variants.

To be safe, companies are exploring strengthening the protection conferred by existing shots by adding doses, updating the shots or crafting a booster. A multivalent shot is another approach in the works.

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Covid-19 Vaccines Targeting Multiple Variants Are in the Works at Moderna, Novavax - The Wall Street Journal