(CNN) – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says it is working “quickly” to issue an emergency use authorization for the Moderna vaccine, the second covid-19 vaccine for the US market, after its vaccine advisers voted to recommend it.
The announcement comes almost a week after the agency licensed the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine and at a terrifying time for the country, as the number of infections, hospitalizations and the number of daily deaths continue to break records.
Experts warn that in the coming weeks, especially if Americans choose to meet and travel on vacation, things could get worse. And a joint forecast released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) projects that there could be another 80,000 deaths caused by COVID-19 in the United States in the next three weeks.
Expecting the FDA to give the green light soon, CDC vaccine advisors have scheduled meetings on Saturday and Sunday to discuss the Moderna vaccine. The group must vote to recommend the vaccine, and the CDC must accept this recommendation before vaccines can begin.
“I think this is a very interesting time,” Dr. Hayley Gans, a member of the FDA’s vaccine advisory committee, told CNN. “The data presented to us was surprising in terms of their effectiveness.”
If the Moderna vaccine is licensed, officials expect another 7.9 million doses of vaccine to be shipped to states next week, said Admiral Brett Giroir, deputy secretary of health for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). in English). Earlier this week, HHS Secretary Alex Azar said two million doses of Pfizer vaccine and 5.9 million doses of Moderna had been allocated for next week.
“We still anticipate that all Americans will have the opportunity to be vaccinated in June,” Giroir said.
The task now is to address the skepticism that many communities have about the vaccine and to pass on the facts, according to Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health.
“I had the opportunity to be intimately involved in every stage of the development of these vaccines. No shortcuts were taken, there is no hidden information, “he told CNN.” It’s something you want to do for yourself, for your family, for the future of our nation. “
“Because if we don’t get to the point where 70-80% of Americans are vaccinated, this could go on and we could lose even more lives, and that would be the worst kind of tragedy possible,” he added. .
LEE: This vaccine “will not solve or cure selfishness,” warns the governor of Tennessee
Some states see the number of covid-19 increase, others relax the restrictions
On Thursday, the country reported more than 230,000 new cases and more than 3,200 deaths. This month alone, the United States reported more than 42,000 deaths from covid-19.
Hospitalizations also continue to rise, with more than 114,200 patients with COVID-19 nationwide, according to COVID follow-up project.
Florida reported the highest number of new cases daily since mid-July. The Kentucky governor has announced a record number of new deaths, saying he is “by far the most people we have lost.” Pennsylvania health officials have announced that the number of hospitalizations in the state is double the peak in the spring, with more than 1,200 patients with COVID-19 in the ICU.
“We continue to hear about additional hospitals across the country that have few intensive care beds or, in some cases, no intensive care beds left,” Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said on Thursday.
Hospitalizations have also increased in New York, the mayor announced, while the average number of new cases is a number that “continues to grow more and more.” And in Oregon, Gov. Kate Brown said hospitals remain “stretched to their limits” and extended her covid-19 declaration of emergency for another two months. He added that “these are the darkest days of this pandemic.”
But while many states are still struggling with fierce expansion, others are easing restrictions.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said this week that the number of COVID-19 cases has dropped in the state and announced that it will lift all coverage for bars and restaurants and remove restrictions on social gatherings.
Bars and restaurants will be able to resume normal operations as long as customers are seated when eating or drinking, wearing masks when not seated, sitting two meters away from other groups and no more than eight people per group, the governor said. . The governor also announced that he is raising the limits of the meeting, but a distance of two meters between the groups is required.
In Utah, where health officials said hospitals across the state are operating at full capacity, Gov. Gary Herbert said he would lift the restriction on alcohol sales after 10 p.m., saying local bars and restaurants have shown a desire to impose physical distancing and use of masks when customers do not eat or drink.
“We appreciate the willingness to step up and contribute to the application of protocols that make bars and restaurants a safe environment for customers to come and participate,” the governor said.
LEE: Why a Covid-19 vaccine does not mean you can stop wearing a mask
“A few dark months ahead”
While the country is waiting for the effects of the vaccines to really begin – which is unlikely to happen until early summer, when vaccines will become more available – the tools that could work immediately to help slow the spread of the virus are those that have been promoted by experts for months: face masks, social distancing and regular hand washing.
It doesn’t just mean, “Well, we’re almost there,” because we’re not there. We still have a few dark months ahead if we don’t do something now to try to stop this terrible upward curve of hospitalizations, cases and deaths.
“This is not the time to let your guard down and gather for the holidays,” he added.
State leaders have echoed the warning in recent days, urging residents to reconsider their holiday plans.
In Wisconsin, a state that has been particularly hard hit since early fall, Gov. Tony Evers urged residents to practically celebrate, adding that hospitals remain “tense” and continue to report staff shortages.
In California, a county health official called the growing number of COVID-19s a “post-holiday growth that doesn’t have to be.”
“This is a lot of mix-ups that shouldn’t have happened, but it has happened and created a huge increase in our cases for us,” said Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County’s director of public health.
“We are entering a new Christmas season. We really need people to stay home. Do not mix, do not travel.
In Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee said that while vaccine licensing is a major turning point in the pandemic, the sad reality is that more residents are getting sick and decisions made by people during Thanksgiving vacation have a severe impact on the state of the hospital system.
“One thing this vaccine will not solve or cure is selfishness or disregard for what is happening to our neighbors around us,” he said.
LEE: ANALYSIS Trump fights for a job he doesn’t do as the coronavirus unleashes
Some states will receive fewer doses of vaccine
The federal government has also informed more states, including Iowa, Illinois, Washington, Michigan and Oregon, to expect fewer doses of the Pfizer vaccine than initially promised.
On Thursday, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee wrote on Twitter that he had been informed that the state’s allocation for vaccines “will be reduced by 40% next week,” adding that “no explanation has been given.”
“This is annoying and frustrating,” he wrote. “We need accurate and predictable figures to plan and ensure success on the ground.”
The cause of the delay remains unclear to many. An HHS spokesman said reports of reduced allocations in jurisdictions were “incorrect” and that states would generally receive all deliveries, although deliveries could be spread over a longer period of time.
“As was the case with the initial deliveries of the Pfizer vaccine, jurisdictions will receive the vaccine at various locations over several days. This eases the burden on jurisdictions and divides the workload into a few days. The same process has been used successfully for the initial distribution of the Pfizer vaccine and we are simply applying the lessons learned, ”the spokesman said.
Pfizer said in a statement on Thursday that the company “had no production problems” and that “no shipments containing the vaccine are suspended or delayed.”
“We still have millions of doses in our warehouse, but so far we have not received shipping instructions for additional doses,” said Pfizer.
Lauren Mascarenhas, Nakia McNabb, Kay Jones, Sara Murray, Ellie Kaufman, Nadia Kounang, Priscilla Álvarez, Tina Burnside, Melissa Alonso and Ben Tinker contributed to this report.