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FDA Analysis Of Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Finds It Effective And Safe

A woman wearing a face mask walks past a Pfizer's headquarters in New York.
John Nacion
/
SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images
A woman wearing a face mask walks past a Pfizer's headquarters in New York.

The Food and Drug Administration released a detailed analysis Tuesday morning of the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer and its partner BioNTech ahead of a Thursday meeting of a group of independent experts that will advise the agency on whether to grant the vaccine emergency use authorization, or EUA.

The agency's analysis finds "no specific safety concerns identified that would preclude issuance of an EUA." Serious reactions were rare. Side effects are common, however, with a majority of study volunteers experiencing reactions at the site of injection, headaches and fatigue.

The analysis also affirms the previously stated vaccine effectiveness of 95%, assessed a week after two doses of vaccine. The vaccine doses are given 21 days apart.

The vaccine authorization under consideration is "for active immunization for the prevention of COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 in individuals 16 years of age and older."

On Thursday the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, an advisory group, will discuss the vaccine in an open public meeting.

The agency will ask the experts to assess if the available scientific evidence available supports the proposed emergency use of the vaccine. Specifically, the committee will be asked if the known and potential benefits of the vaccine outweigh its known and potential risks in people 16 and older.

The FDA will also ask the experts to weigh in on what additional studies should be done by the companies to further elucidate the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine after it is available under an EUA.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Scott Hensley edits stories about health, biomedical research and pharmaceuticals for NPR's Science desk. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he has led the desk's reporting on the development of vaccines against the coronavirus.