Pfizer says its coronavirus vaccine works

Lydia Ramsey Pflanzer

Hello,

It's a big day: Pfizer just said that its vaccine is more than 90% effective at preventing COVID-19, an incredibly important milestone in confronting the pandemic. Pfizer and its partner BioNTech are the first to report results on how effective a vaccine is, and it's sending Pfizer's stock — and markets more broadly — soaring.

That initial effectiveness from Pfizer is much higher than experts had anticipated, Andrew Dunn reminds us. They had hoped for anything above 70% effective.

Should the vaccine get authorized, distribution could largely occur under President-elect Joe Biden, and experts say rollout could be smoother as part of a Biden administration.

Pfizer's experimental coronavirus vaccine succeeded in the final stage of clinical trials, the drugmaker said Monday, a milestone in society's fight against the pandemic.
The study found people who got Pfizer's shot were less likely to develop COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The drugmaker said the shot was found to be more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19.
The trial is still ongoing, and the interim results have not been published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.
The vaccine will not be available to people immediately. It still needs to be evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.

Democrats made the 2020 election all about healthcare, and are prepared to expand the Affordable Care Act.
The Senate races aren't over yet, but Republicans' apparent hold on the upper chamber would create an insurmountable hurdle to Democrats' most ambitious healthcare goals.
There's still trouble ahead even if Democrats win control of the Senate. Members don't agree about how to create a government plan that would compete with private insurance — a key promise by President-elect Joe Biden.

The chances of the first new Alzheimer's drug in nearly 20 years reaching the market received a major blow on Friday.
An independent group of experts convened by the US Food and Drug Administration predominantly disputed the idea that there's enough evidence to show Biogen's drug aducanumab is effective or approvable.
The panel's negative recommendations on aducanumab stand in stark contrast to the FDA's own position.
While the committee's recommendations were clearly negative, the FDA will make the final call on approval. The agency aims to make a decision by March 7, 2021 at the latest.

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