AstraZeneca on Wednesday released new data on the COVID-19 vaccine – which the company says shows a 76% efficacy rate in preventing symptomatic cases of coronavirus.
The data communication is the latest rescue in a back-and-forth with US regulators, who have accused the London-based pharmaceutical company of “cherry picking” data to make it appear that the shooting was more effective.
On Monday, AstraZeneca claimed an efficiency rate of 79%, but the next day, an independent group overseeing the study wrote a letter to U.S. health officials saying the company had missed some symptomatic cases of COVID-19 that had place – a move that they said had the potential to erode public confidence in the vaccine.
Following public criticism, AstraZeneca said the data was based on a “pre-specified interim analysis” and agreed to release an updated report.
“This is really what you call an unforced error, because it’s true that it’s very likely a very good vaccine,” Dr. Anthony Fauci told Good Morning America on Tuesday. “This kind of thing does … it really raises some doubts about vaccines and can contribute to hesitation. It was not necessary. ”
Meanwhile, information released on Wednesday “confirms that our COVID-19 vaccine is extremely effective in adults, including those aged 65 and over,” said Mene Pangalos.
AstaZeneca hopes to regain confidence after a tough launch in Europe – which left the company with inconsistent data – as well as a scare over several high-profile cases of patients who developed blood clots after receiving the jab.
AstaZeneca also said that it intends to request the emergency authorization of the FDA for the vaccine in a few weeks.
With Post threads