FDA Panel Recommends Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel voted 20-0, with one abstention, to recommend Moderna’s COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine Thursday. Next, FDA officials decide whether to grant emergency use authorization based on the committee’s findings. Earlier this week the agency confirmed results that showed Moderna's two-step vaccine to be 94% effective at preventing the coronavirus. This comes after the FDA voted to authorize Pfizer and BioNTech's vaccine last week. If the process is similar to that of Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine, the FDA could grant emergency use authorization for Moderna’s vaccine as early as Friday, and 6 million doses of the vaccine could be distributed as early as next week. This story received coverage from media outlets across the political spectrum. Outlets from all sides of the political spectrum noted that 10-year-old company Moderna had never had a vaccine reach late-stage trials, while Pfizer is considered to be a giant in the pharmaceutical world.