The UK has a ‘ray of hope’ as a result of the new vaccine against Oxford University / AstraZeneca coronavirus, an expert told CNN recently.
Lawrence Young, a virologist and professor of molecular oncology at the University of Warwick, told CNN the vaccine offers a “ray of hope” as the virus continues to spread across Europe.
Context
The UK on Wednesday became the first country to approve the COVID-19 vaccine from the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, as I wrote on the Deseret News.
- The new vaccine is a cheap and easy-to-store shot that many of the world will rely on to end the pandemic, “according to The New York Times.
What about the United States?
The United States is unlikely to receive the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine before April because of questions about its effectiveness, Moncef Slaoui, chief of Operation Warp Speed, said in a statement.
- The concern is specifically about how the vaccine will affect the risk groups.
- “We plan, if all goes well, that the read-out and emergency use authorization can be granted somewhere in early April,” Slaoui said on Wednesday according to Politico.
- “As far as the U.S. population is concerned, I think it’s important to say that one vaccine is 95 percent effective, another vaccine X percent, regardless of the number,” Slaoui said. “We need a clear and concrete number more than a number collected by adding different trials with different schedules and different materials.”