Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and BioNTech (NASDAQ: BNTX) became the first drug manufacturers to win the US emergency use license for the COVID-19 BNT162b2 vaccine over the weekend. On Monday, the first Americans were vaccinated against coronavirus. In this Motley Fool Live video recorded on December 11, 2020, the head of the Office of Health and Cannabis, Corinne Cardina, discussed with the immunotherapy scientist, Dr. Leo Nissola, about why the Pfizer vaccine is so important.
Corrine Cardina: Last night, the FDA advisory group recommended that the FDA continue to authorize the Pfizer-BioNTech candidate vaccine for emergency use. Today, the FDA confirmed that it will pursue that AU for the vaccine.
HHS Secretary Alex Azar said that this authorization will take place in the next few days and that we will be able to see vaccinations until Monday. Dr. Nissola, what does this mean for the United States and the world?
Dr. Leo Nissola: Well, first of all, I hope that the people at home understand the uniqueness of this moment. We have never experienced this in our existence. Clinical trials are a complex and lengthy process, which I’m not sure I thought would be possible to deliver a drug in such a short time, and it’s nice to see that happen.
For us, what it means is that we now have the tools to get us out of the pandemic in a safe way. I mean, we won’t rely on the herd’s immunity. We will not only rely on strategies to deal with therapy only for those who become ill, but also to prevent people from becoming severely COVID-19 and I think this is really important.