CALIFORNIA, USA — The first public vaccination of a coronavirus vaccine in a western nation will occur Tuesday in the United Kingdom. The U.S. could soon begin vaccinating Americans, but it needs approval from the Food and Drug Administration, which is scheduled to evaluate it on Thursday.
“It's just incredible actually,” said Louis Coughlan, Joint Chief Pharmacist at Croydon Health Service, which took delivery of the vaccine outside of London. “To know that [vaccines] are here and we are amongst the first in the country to actually receive the vaccine and therefore the first in the world is just amazing. I am so proud."
Frontline healthcare workers will be the first to be offered the vaccine in the U.S. followed closely by nursing home residents.
The American Health Care Association, a lobbying group that represents 14,000 facilities, urged governors to quickly distribute the vaccine to those most vulnerable to COVID-19’s worst symptoms. States can prioritize different groups to receive the vaccine based on individual needs.
“If the governors and public health officials are able to do this, we will save tens of thousands of lives in these facilities. It is a staggering statistic that less than 1% of the COVID cases in the United States have hit people in long term care, but over 40% of the deaths have occurred there,” said Mark Parkinson, CEO and President of AHCA.
In January, the vaccine may be offered for Americans over the age of 65 or people with high-risk medical conditions. The exact condition list is subject to change and may include obesity after researchers found people with obesity are twice as likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 symptoms and 74% more likely to go to the ICU. The United Kingdom considers morbid obesity a high-risk condition.
Medical experts also must convince the public the vaccine is safe, despite how quickly it was brought to market. The Pew Research Center estimates 39% of Americans don’t plan to take it. About 60-70% of the population must be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity.
Vaccines to protect against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have risen up the agenda of most policy makers and individuals, as the second wave of COVID-19 in northern hemisphere countries grows and there is increasing pressure on healthcare systems. For any licensed vaccine, efficacy and duration of protection are key issues.
“This is the highest standard of scientific evidence. Two vaccines from two competing companies using similar technology but totally independently developed, ending up having the same vaccine efficacy, the same kind of performance, provide reassurance, enormous reassurance that these data are real and lasting,” said Moncef Slaoui, Chief Advisor for Operation Warp Speed. “Please, please don't let yourself be biased. Just open up your mind, look at the facts, look at the data and then make up your mind.”
