Europe Goes Pfizer

 

As far as the European Union is concerned, Pfizer has the best Covid-19 vaccine coupled with a demonstrated track record of reliability.  The EU has endorsed mRNA technology vaccines as superior to the others such as AstraZenica and Johnson & Johnson.

AstraZeneca was supposed to be the workhorse of the EU's vaccine drive this year — a cheap and easy-to-transport shot to break the pandemic's back. Yet, the EU said that out of 120 million doses promised for the 1st quarter, only 30 million were delivered, and, of the 180 million expected, now there are only 70 million set for delivery in the 2nd quarter.

Because of that shortfall, the EU has come under crushing pressure as, even though it it is a major producer and exporter of vaccines, it cannot get its vaccinations even close to the levels of the United Kingdom and the United States.

EU Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said Pfizer-BioNTech “has proven to be a reliable partner. It has delivered on its commitments, and it is responsive to our needs. This is to the immediate benefit of EU citizens.”

Von der Leyen said Europe needs to have a technology that can boost immunity, tackle new variants and produce shots quickly and massively. “mRNA vaccines are a clear case in point,” she said.

Producing mRNA vaccines in-house is a no brainer for countries that still have their own pharmaceutical laboratory capability. While it's hard to know from day to day what our federal government is planning the last I heard they were looking to go the old technology route, Novavax.

Among a participant group of 2,905 adults, [Novavax] demonstrated an overall efficacy of only 48.6% against the predominant B.1.351 variant. While no severe Covid-19 was noted in the vaccine group, these numbers are less encouraging than the UK group. Among HIV-negative adults, the efficacy rises to 55.4%, which is still well below par. This is a consistent theme across the vaccine landscape. The South African variant, along with its genetically similar counterparts like those in Brazil, Japan, and elsewhere are significantly resistant to vaccine-induced and naturally formed antibodies.

Meanwhile, the federal government's failure to deliver adequate stocks of effective vaccines means that many of those who receive their initial vaccination will have to wait up to four months for the booster. How that delay will degrade the efficacy of these vaccines is unknown.

When it comes to the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, partial protection only kicks in about two weeks after the first dose is administered, Dr. [Eleanor Fish, professor of immunology, University of Toronto] explained.

Depending on one’s age and health status, “that partial protection varies quite significantly,” she said, which means people are still susceptible to becoming infected, and it’s unclear how sick they could get. Moreover, by extending the time between doses beyond the three to four weeks recommended by vaccine companies, it’s unknown how long that partial protection may last, she said.

“Whether it lasts up to four months or it doesn’t, we have no idea,” she said.