A Guide to Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 Vaccine

The first COVID-19 vaccine that’s likely to go into any American arms is Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine, which was designed and developed by the German biotech company BioNTech. Here, we give a rundown of basic facts about the vaccine and an overview of how it works.

Vaccine name: BNT162b2; Design type: mRNA; Dose number: 2, 21 days apart

Efficacy: 95% efficacy in preventing symptomatic COVID-19 in adults without prior evidence of infection a week or more after receipt of the second dose.

Safety: No serious safety concerns reported. The shots, however,...