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Coronavirus Briefing: What Happened Today | Coronavirus Briefing: What Happened Today |
(about 5 hours later) | |
This is the Coronavirus Briefing, an informed guide to the global outbreak. Sign up here to get the briefing by email. | This is the Coronavirus Briefing, an informed guide to the global outbreak. Sign up here to get the briefing by email. |
During the trial of a vaccine, the final test is also its biggest: Phase 3. That’s when the vaccine is given to tens of thousands of people, along with a placebo group, to determine its safety and effectiveness. It’s the final step before a vaccine is approved and distributed to the public. | During the trial of a vaccine, the final test is also its biggest: Phase 3. That’s when the vaccine is given to tens of thousands of people, along with a placebo group, to determine its safety and effectiveness. It’s the final step before a vaccine is approved and distributed to the public. |
Of the more than 155 vaccines in development around the world, only four have reached Phase 3, according to The Times’s vaccine tracker. (The Chinese military issued the first approval for a vaccine last month, but only for limited use.) | Of the more than 155 vaccines in development around the world, only four have reached Phase 3, according to The Times’s vaccine tracker. (The Chinese military issued the first approval for a vaccine last month, but only for limited use.) |
But at least three more potential vaccines appear ready to enter Phase 3. | But at least three more potential vaccines appear ready to enter Phase 3. |
One, made by the biotech company Moderna, provoked an immune response in 45 people in a study published this week — and it did so safely and without serious side effects. The company announced yesterday that it would begin Phase 3 testing in 30,000 people later this month, to be completed by late October. | One, made by the biotech company Moderna, provoked an immune response in 45 people in a study published this week — and it did so safely and without serious side effects. The company announced yesterday that it would begin Phase 3 testing in 30,000 people later this month, to be completed by late October. |
Russian scientists hailed another potential vaccine as safe and effective this week, and said it would enter Phase 3 in mid-August. And in an interview with Meridian Magazine, an executive director for pharmaceutical sciences at Pfizer said the company would begin a Phase 3 trial with one of its vaccine candidates later this month and, assuming it is positive, have 200 million doses ready by November. | Russian scientists hailed another potential vaccine as safe and effective this week, and said it would enter Phase 3 in mid-August. And in an interview with Meridian Magazine, an executive director for pharmaceutical sciences at Pfizer said the company would begin a Phase 3 trial with one of its vaccine candidates later this month and, assuming it is positive, have 200 million doses ready by November. |
Experts agree that we’ll need multiple vaccines because no single company can quickly produce the billions of doses the world needs. | Experts agree that we’ll need multiple vaccines because no single company can quickly produce the billions of doses the world needs. |
One big outstanding question: It’s unknown how effective any of these vaccines may be, even those that get F.D.A. approval. They’re created to provoke an immune response, often nudging our bodies to create antibodies. But experts say that antibodies don’t necessarily confer immunity. And a recent study suggests that antibodies may last only two to three months after infection, especially in patients who were asymptomatic. | One big outstanding question: It’s unknown how effective any of these vaccines may be, even those that get F.D.A. approval. They’re created to provoke an immune response, often nudging our bodies to create antibodies. But experts say that antibodies don’t necessarily confer immunity. And a recent study suggests that antibodies may last only two to three months after infection, especially in patients who were asymptomatic. |
New thinking on blood type. Early studies suggested that people with Type A blood were at greater risk of getting sick and falling dangerously ill. But two studies that examined thousands of patients suggest a much weaker link to blood type. | New thinking on blood type. Early studies suggested that people with Type A blood were at greater risk of getting sick and falling dangerously ill. But two studies that examined thousands of patients suggest a much weaker link to blood type. |
Since early June, shortly after Texas had mostly reopened, the state’s daily case counts have followed a steep upward trajectory. It recorded nearly 11,000 new infections and more than 130 deaths on Tuesday alone — records in both categories for the state. | Since early June, shortly after Texas had mostly reopened, the state’s daily case counts have followed a steep upward trajectory. It recorded nearly 11,000 new infections and more than 130 deaths on Tuesday alone — records in both categories for the state. |
Texas is now a microcosm of the U.S., showing how chronic underfunding of public-health initiatives has put the country on track for the worst response to the virus in the developed world. Caution is growing: The Houston Independent School District, the seventh-largest in the nation, announced plans to start the school year virtually on Sept. 8, tentatively moving to in-person classes in October. | Texas is now a microcosm of the U.S., showing how chronic underfunding of public-health initiatives has put the country on track for the worst response to the virus in the developed world. Caution is growing: The Houston Independent School District, the seventh-largest in the nation, announced plans to start the school year virtually on Sept. 8, tentatively moving to in-person classes in October. |
Much of Texas’ failure stems from a combination of public resistance to measures to stop the virus’s spread and political interference with them. Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has frequently changed course in his efforts to control the state’s outbreak and, under pressure from his party and residents, started reopening the state in May before it had met his own criteria for doing so. | Much of Texas’ failure stems from a combination of public resistance to measures to stop the virus’s spread and political interference with them. Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has frequently changed course in his efforts to control the state’s outbreak and, under pressure from his party and residents, started reopening the state in May before it had met his own criteria for doing so. |
The consequences of failing to tamp down the virus early on have become clear — and for our colleague Edgar Sandoval, they are personal. In late June, he returned home to the Rio Grande Valley to report on the surge of cases along the Texas-Mexico border. But when he arrived, he found an outbreak spreading through his own family. | The consequences of failing to tamp down the virus early on have become clear — and for our colleague Edgar Sandoval, they are personal. In late June, he returned home to the Rio Grande Valley to report on the surge of cases along the Texas-Mexico border. But when he arrived, he found an outbreak spreading through his own family. |
About a dozen of his relatives fell ill, and his mother and aunt were hospitalized. “Everyone told stories of excruciating body aches, debilitating chills and burning fevers,” he wrote. | About a dozen of his relatives fell ill, and his mother and aunt were hospitalized. “Everyone told stories of excruciating body aches, debilitating chills and burning fevers,” he wrote. |
Here’s a roundup of restrictions in all 50 U.S. states. | Here’s a roundup of restrictions in all 50 U.S. states. |
Let us know how you’re dealing with the outbreak. Send us a response here, and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter. | Let us know how you’re dealing with the outbreak. Send us a response here, and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter. |
Sign up here to get the briefing by email. | Sign up here to get the briefing by email. |