After announcing that its vaccine was 100% efficacious in a Phase 3 trial involving adolescents aged 12 to 15, Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NSDQ:BNTX) are seeking authorization from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to distribute the vaccine to that age group. BioNTech’s CEO, Uğur Şahin, estimated that the vaccine would be available to early adolescents in 27 European countries […]
COVID-19 vaccine
Side effects relatively rare for Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, study says
A recent study found that only 13.5% of recipients of the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NSDQ:BNTX) had systemic side effects after the first dose. That figure climbed to 22.0% after the second dose. Conversely, just over one-third (33.7%) of recipients of the first dose of vaccine from AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) had systemic side effects, according to the […]
Moderna pledges to manufacture up to 3B COVID-19 vaccine doses in 2022
Moderna (NSDQ:MRNA) announced today that it committed funds to increase its COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing capacity to up to 3 billion doses for 2022. Cambridge, Mass.-based Moderna’s new funding commitments would increase supply at its owned and partnered manufacturing facilities up to that 3 billion-dose capacity, depending upon the mix between the authorized Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at […]
U.S. to donate 60M doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine
The Biden administration announced today that it will begin sharing its store of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine following safety reviews. Once the vaccine clears federal safety reviews, 60 million doses of the vaccine are expected to be made available, according to a Tweet from senior White House advisor Andy Slavitt. “BREAKING: U.S. to release 60 million Astra Zeneca […]
More than 5 million skipped getting second COVID-19 vaccine dose
The percentage of people who failed to get the second dose of Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines is growing, according to recent CDC data. Some five million people, or almost 8% of people who got the first vaccine dose, missed getting the second. In mid-March, 3% of people were overdue for their second dose. People […]
FDA, CDC lift pause on J&J COVID-19 vaccine
The FDA and CDC have lifted the pause placed on the Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) COVID-19 vaccine after reports of blood clots caused concern. On April 13, the FDA and CDC issued a joint statement recommending the pause in the administration of the J&J (Janssen) COVID-19 vaccine after, among 6.8 million doses delivered in the […]
FDA releases scathing inspection report regarding Emergent BioSolutions plant
An FDA report cites multiple failures in an Emergent BioSolutions plant tapped to produce vaccines for Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca. The vaccine plant had been forced to discard up to 15 million doses of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine in a single manufacturing batch. Emergent Biosolutions recently paused production of the vaccine during the FDA inspection and […]
mRNA vaccine led to shingles in a handful of immunocompromised patients
A group of researchers in Israel has concluded that an mRNA-based vaccine could activate herpes zoster (shingles) in a limited number of people with rheumatic diseases. The viral infection, which can cause a painful rash, is caused by the varicella-zoster virus, which is also responsible for chickenpox. In a study focusing on individuals with autoimmune […]
Benefits of J&J COVID-19 vaccine outweigh risks, EU regulator says
The European Medicines Agency confirmed that the benefits of the COVID-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) outweigh risks of blood clots. At a meeting today, EMA’s safety committee (PRAC) concluded that there is a link between unusual blood clots with low blood platelets with the COVID-19 vaccine made by J&J’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals unit. PRAC determined that […]
Annual COVID-19 vaccines likely, according to Pfizer CEO
The public may require annual vaccines to protect against SARS-CoV-2, Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) CEO Albert Bourla said today. “It is extremely important to suppress the pool of people that can be susceptible to the virus,” Bourla said in a CNBC interview. While the details of Pfizer-BioNTech boosters are not yet clear, COVID-19 boosters will likely be based on […]
EU won’t renew J&J, AstraZeneca vaccine contracts, report says
Reports from Italy claim that the European Union Commission won’t renew COVID-19 vaccine contracts next year with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson. According to Reuters, Italian outlet La Stampa reported that sources from the Italian health ministry have said the commission does not want to pursue contract renewals with those two companies once those encompassing the current year expire, […]