Reinforcement surveys for the coronavirus vaccine will be needed at some point, but it is too early to say how often it will be needed, said Stephane Bancel, CEO of Moderna, in an exclusive interview with “Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street “said.
“The variant is going to be the big question in terms of a boost,” Bancel explained to host Maria Bartiromo. “One thing to think about is natural immunity. If you become infected, make antibodies or [when] you are vaccinated and make antibodies, over time the level of antibodies will drop, normal and natural. Over time, boost will be needed, it is too early to know how often because we do not have enough data. ‘
Bartiromo questioned whether the variants should be considered ‘worrying’.
“We do not know how the variants will affect long-term efficiency,” Bancel said. “In the short term we are not worried. The B 1.1.7, the [variant] identified in the UK, which is now prominent in the US, we have seen and published that the level of antibody is similar to an old strain of the virus. We feel very good about this one. ‘
MODERNA COVID-19 VACCINE HOLDS AT LEAST SIX MONTHS, STUDY FINDINGS
Bancel stressed that Moderna’s two-shot vaccine “has an efficiency of up to 90%” and that it seems to be doing very well in the real world.
‘We feel very confident about a vaccine and still give advice to people [that], given the risk of lung disease, it is important to get the pandemic under control so that we can return to our normal lives and be with their loved ones. ‘
On the US decision to suspend the distribution of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine due to the reporting of blood clots to a small number of recipients, Bancel said he had been monitoring the vaccine’s safety “very closely” since the shootings of his company. received emergency permission from the Food. and Drug Administration (FDA) in December.
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“I think the good news, if there is a silver lining, is that the American people feel good about the CDC and the FDA, and how they take the safety of American citizens very seriously,” he said. “I believe and trust the FDA, CDC and the scientists and advisers to do the right thing for the American people.”
The CEO also emphasized that booster shots “will be very important to keep the country safe and open and that we are working very hard. In thirty days, Moderna has developed a new boost for the South African tribe. We have published data this week that shows it works very well in animals, we will have human data soon. ‘