According to reports, India's Covaxin vaccine for the Wuhan Virus could be ready by February next year. Palki Sharma Upadhyay tells you what this means for India's fight against the pandemic.

Gravitas: Wuhan Coronavirus: India to get a vaccine in February?

According to reports, India's Covaxin vaccine for the Coronavirus could be ready by February next year. The question of course is how safe is this? WION brings you a report.

India made Coronavirus vaccine to be ready by February?

Bangladesh signed a deal with the Serum Institute of India on Thursday to buy 30 million doses of potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by British drugmaker AstraZeneca.

AstraZeneca’s experimental COVID-19 vaccine is seen as one of the most advanced candidates in the race against the novel coronavirus.

"Whenever the vaccine is ready, the Serum Institute will give us 30 million doses in the first phase," health minister Zahid Maleque told reporters after the deal was signed in Dhaka.

He said five million doses of vaccine per month would be purchased through Bangladesh's drug maker, Beximco Pharmaceuticals.

"We'll be able to vaccinate 15 million people as two shots of vaccine are required for each person 28 days apart," Maleque said.

Bangladesh was in talks with development partners, including the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, to secure funds for the vaccine, government officials said.

Meanwhile, Sinovac Biotech's late-stage trial of a potential coronavirus vaccine in Bangladesh has become uncertain after Dhaka refused to meet the Chinese company's demand for co-funding.

Experts fear Bangladesh might face another surge in infections during the winter, having so far confirmed 416,006 cases, including 6,021 deaths.

The Serum Institute, the world's largest manufacturer of vaccines by volume, has partnered with AstraZeneca, the Gates Foundation and the Gavi vaccine alliance to produce more than a billion doses of a COVID-19 vaccine for global supply.

It is holding trials for three potential coronavirus vaccines, including one licensed to AstraZeneca by Oxford University.

AstraZeneca has signed several supply and manufacturing deals&nbsp;with companies and governments around the world, while data in October showed the vaccine produces a immune response in both old and young adults.

Bangladesh signed a deal with the Serum Institute of India on Thursday to buy 30 million doses of potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by British drugmaker AstraZeneca.

Bangladesh signed a deal with the Serum Institute of India on Thursday to buy 30 million doses of potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by British drugmaker AstraZeneca. AstraZeneca’s experimental COVID-19 vaccine is seen as one of the most advanced candidates in the race against the novel coronavirus. "Whenever the vaccine is ready, the Serum Institute will give us 30 million doses in the first phase," health minister Zahid Maleque told reporters after the deal was signed in Dhaka. He said five million doses of vaccine per month would be purchased through Bangladesh's drug maker, Beximco Pharmaceuticals. "We'll be able to vaccinate 15 million people as two shots of vaccine are required for each person 28 days apart," Maleque said. Bangladesh was in talks with development partners, including the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, to secure funds for the vaccine, government officials said. Meanwhile, Sinovac Biotech's late-stage trial of a potential coronavirus vaccine in Bangladesh has become uncertain after Dhaka refused to meet the Chinese company's demand for co-funding. Experts fear Bangladesh might face another surge in infections during the winter, having so far confirmed 416,006 cases, including 6,021 deaths. The Serum Institute, the world's largest manufacturer of vaccines by volume, has partnered with AstraZeneca, the Gates Foundation and the Gavi vaccine alliance to produce more than a billion doses of a COVID-19 vaccine for global supply. It is holding trials for three potential coronavirus vaccines, including one licensed to AstraZeneca by Oxford University. AstraZeneca has signed several supply and manufacturing deals with companies and governments around the world, while data in October showed the vaccine produces a immune response in both old and young adults.

Bangladesh signs deal with India for 30 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine

Moderna has said that it is on track to report early data from a late stage trial of it's experimental COVID-19 vaccine as early as next month. Watch the report to know more.

Moderna preparing to launch covid-19 vaccine

India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will also help countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that as part of such efforts, India organised two training modules for its neighbouring countries in which about 90 health experts and scientists participated.

"We propose to expand these programmes to include other interested countries," he said at an online media briefing.

"As announced by Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) in his speech to the UN General Assembly last month, India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic," Srivastava said.

India will also help all countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities for the delivery of vaccines, he said.

From October 17, a delegation of the concerned departments visited Bangladesh and had fruitful discussions with their Bangladeshi counterparts on the current stage of vaccine development in India and modalities of clinical trials in Bangladesh, Srivastava pointed out.

The concerned officials of the two sides have had a virtual interaction on Myanmar's interest in cooperation on COVID19 vaccines, he said.

"As the situation with respect to vaccine development evolves, the sides will discuss and decide on modalities of cooperation," he said.

"In due course, depending on the trials in India, we propose to expand our cooperation with other countries also in clinical trials and capacity building for vaccine development, production and delivery," he said.

India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will also help countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.

India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will also help countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday. Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said that as part of such efforts, India organised two training modules for its neighbouring countries in which about 90 health experts and scientists participated. "We propose to expand these programmes to include other interested countries," he said at an online media briefing. "As announced by Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) in his speech to the UN General Assembly last month, India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic," Srivastava said. India will also help all countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities for the delivery of vaccines, he said. From October 17, a delegation of the concerned departments visited Bangladesh and had fruitful discussions with their Bangladeshi counterparts on the current stage of vaccine development in India and modalities of clinical trials in Bangladesh, Srivastava pointed out. The concerned officials of the two sides have had a virtual interaction on Myanmar's interest in cooperation on COVID19 vaccines, he said. "As the situation with respect to vaccine development evolves, the sides will discuss and decide on modalities of cooperation," he said. "In due course, depending on the trials in India, we propose to expand our cooperation with other countries also in clinical trials and capacity building for vaccine development, production and delivery," he said.

India's vaccine production, delivery capacity to help all humanity in fighting COVID-19: MEA

Drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd on Wednesday rolled out a preliminary timeline for the India trials of Russia's coronavirus vaccine candidate, with the late-stage expected to be completed by as early as March 2021.

Chief Executive Officer Erez Israeli said enrolment to the mid-stage trial of the Sputnik-V vaccine will start in the next few weeks and the trial was likely to end by December.

"(Phase 3 trial) can be over as fast as the end of March, but it could go into April or May," Israeli said on a post-earnings press briefing, adding the timeline will depend on the Phase 2 trial results and further approvals from authorities.

With 8 million COVID-19 infections and second only to the United States, India is pinning its hopes on a vaccine to stem the spread of the pandemic.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/india-news/russias-sputnik-v-vaccine-against-covid-19-will-be-tested-on-100-indian-volunteers-337375" hreflang="en">Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 will be tested on 100 Indian volunteers</a>

The ongoing festive season and a state assembly election are seen by healthcare experts as adding to the challenges in containing the outbreak.

The Hyderabad-based company had received renewed approval for late-stage clinical trials in India of the Sputnik-V vaccine earlier this month, after initially signing a deal with the Russian Direct Investment Fund in September.

The company expects to enrol 100 participants for the mid-stage trial and 1,500 people for the late-stage.

Shares of the company closed 2.9% lower at 4,951 rupees in a weak Mumbai market after Dr Reddy's reported a 30.3% fall in consolidated net profit after tax from a year earlier. Net sales, however, jumped to 47.77 billion rupees from 39.98 billion rupees a year ago.

The drugmaker, which last week isolated all its data centre services as a preventive measure following a cyberattack, said it was a ransomware attack, but was yet to ascertain if any personal information was accessed.

Drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd on Wednesday rolled out a preliminary timeline for the India trials of Russia's coronavirus vaccine candidate, with the late-stage expected to be completed by as early as March 2021.

Drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd on Wednesday rolled out a preliminary timeline for the India trials of Russia's coronavirus vaccine candidate, with the late-stage expected to be completed by as early as March 2021. Chief Executive Officer Erez Israeli said enrolment to the mid-stage trial of the Sputnik-V vaccine will start in the next few weeks and the trial was likely to end by December. "(Phase 3 trial) can be over as fast as the end of March, but it could go into April or May," Israeli said on a post-earnings press briefing, adding the timeline will depend on the Phase 2 trial results and further approvals from authorities. With 8 million COVID-19 infections and second only to the United States, India is pinning its hopes on a vaccine to stem the spread of the pandemic. Also read: Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 will be tested on 100 Indian volunteers The ongoing festive season and a state assembly election are seen by healthcare experts as adding to the challenges in containing the outbreak. The Hyderabad-based company had received renewed approval for late-stage clinical trials in India of the Sputnik-V vaccine earlier this month, after initially signing a deal with the Russian Direct Investment Fund in September. The company expects to enrol 100 participants for the mid-stage trial and 1,500 people for the late-stage. Shares of the company closed 2.9% lower at 4,951 rupees in a weak Mumbai market after Dr Reddy's reported a 30.3% fall in consolidated net profit after tax from a year earlier. Net sales, however, jumped to 47.77 billion rupees from 39.98 billion rupees a year ago. The drugmaker, which last week isolated all its data centre services as a preventive measure following a cyberattack, said it was a ransomware attack, but was yet to ascertain if any personal information was accessed.

India trials of Russian Sputnik-V vaccine may end as early as March: Dr Reddy's

A UK taskforce has voiced concerns that an early coronavirus vaccine&nbsp;"is likely to be&nbsp;imperfect" and that they "might not work for everyone".

According to a piece published in The Lancet medical journal, Kate Bingham,&nbsp;UK Vaccine Taskforce Chair said&nbsp;''we do not know that we will ever have a vaccine at all. It is important to guard against complacency and over-optimism."

"The first generation of vaccines is likely to be&nbsp;imperfect, and we should be prepared that they might not prevent infection but rather reduce symptoms, and, even then, might not work for everyone or for long," she added.

Bingham wrote that the Vaccine Taskforce recognises that "many, and possibly all, of these vaccines, could fail", adding the focus has been on vaccines that are expected to elicit immune responses in the population older than 65 years.

She said that the global manufacturing capacity for vaccines is vastly inadequate for the billions of doses that are needed and that the United Kingdom's manufacturing capability to date has been "equally scarce".

Meanwhile, British pharma giant AstraZeneca said on Monday trials of its coronavirus&nbsp;vaccine&nbsp;pioneered with Oxford University had shown "encouraging" responses among the elderly, as well as younger participants.

Earlier on Tuesday, a study by scientists at Imperial College London found that antibodies against the novel coronavirus declined rapidly in the British population during the summer, suggesting protection after infection may not be long-lasting and raising the prospect of waning immunity in the community.

The Telegraph newspaper reported that the British government is working on the assumption that the second wave of coronavirus will be more deadly than the first.

A UK taskforce has voiced concerns that an early coronavirus vaccine "is likely to be imperfect" and that they "might not work for everyone". According to a piece published in The Lancet medical journal, Kate Bingham, UK Vaccine Taskforce Chair said ''we do not know that we will ever have a vaccine at all.

A UK taskforce has voiced concerns that an early coronavirus vaccine "is likely to be imperfect" and that they "might not work for everyone". According to a piece published in The Lancet medical journal, Kate Bingham, UK Vaccine Taskforce Chair said ''we do not know that we will ever have a vaccine at all. It is important to guard against complacency and over-optimism." "The first generation of vaccines is likely to be imperfect, and we should be prepared that they might not prevent infection but rather reduce symptoms, and, even then, might not work for everyone or for long," she added. Bingham wrote that the Vaccine Taskforce recognises that "many, and possibly all, of these vaccines, could fail", adding the focus has been on vaccines that are expected to elicit immune responses in the population older than 65 years. She said that the global manufacturing capacity for vaccines is vastly inadequate for the billions of doses that are needed and that the United Kingdom's manufacturing capability to date has been "equally scarce". Meanwhile, British pharma giant AstraZeneca said on Monday trials of its coronavirus vaccine pioneered with Oxford University had shown "encouraging" responses among the elderly, as well as younger participants. Earlier on Tuesday, a study by scientists at Imperial College London found that antibodies against the novel coronavirus declined rapidly in the British population during the summer, suggesting protection after infection may not be long-lasting and raising the prospect of waning immunity in the community. The Telegraph newspaper reported that the British government is working on the assumption that the second wave of coronavirus will be more deadly than the first.

First generation of coronavirus vaccine 'likely to be imperfect', says UK taskforce

Union Minister Pratap Sarangi on Sunday said that all people of the country will be given free COVID vaccine, amidst the demand by opposition parties in the country for it and not only in poll-bound Bihar as announced by the BJP.

The BJP announcement of free COVID vaccine for Bihar, where assembly polls begin this week, had kicked up a controversy with the opposition parties tearing into the NDA government alleging that the ruling party was using the pandemic for political reasons.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said the announcement was in order as it was an election manifesto announcement.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that all people will be provided free of cost vaccines.

An estimated Rs 500 odd will be spent on vaccination of each person, Sarangi told reporters after addressing a campaign meeting for the November 3 assembly by-poll in Balasore.

Modi had in a televised adddress to the nation on October 20 said that Indian scientists are in the process of developing several vaccines that are at different stages of clinical trials and the results seem encouraging.

Sarangi, the union minister of state for animal husbandry, dairy, fisheries and micro, small and medium enterprises spoke in reply to question raised by Odisha Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister, R P Swain.

Swain had earlier in the day sought clarification from Dharmendra Pradhan and Sarangi, the two union ministers from Odisha questioning them for their silence on their party BJP's stand on free COVID-19 vaccination for the people of the state along the lines of the one being promised in Bihar.

The governments of Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Puduchchery have already announced free of cost COVID vaccines for the people of their states, while Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has demanded free vaccine for all citizens across the country.

Swain had tweeted "I am asking questions to two Odisha union ministers from Balasore soil to clarify as to why the people of the state will not get free of cost COVID vaccine. The union ministers should clarify BJPs stand on the corona vaccination in Odisha."

On the state governments steps for vaccination, Swain said it has signed an agreement with a vaccine manufacturer and is committed to extending the facility to all people of the state.

He, however, did not say whether the state government will provide the vaccine to the people free of cost.

BJP deputy leader in Odisha Assembly Bishnu Charan Sethi said the Centre has been supporting Odisha fully during the pandemic and has granted Rs 22,000 crore for the purpose.

"But large scale lapses have been detected in the utilisation of the fund," he alleged.

Union Minister Pratap Sarangi on Sunday said that all people of the country will be given free COVID vaccine, amidst the demand by opposition parties in the country for it and not only in poll-bound Bihar as announced by the BJP.

Union Minister Pratap Sarangi on Sunday said that all people of the country will be given free COVID vaccine, amidst the demand by opposition parties in the country for it and not only in poll-bound Bihar as announced by the BJP. The BJP announcement of free COVID vaccine for Bihar, where assembly polls begin this week, had kicked up a controversy with the opposition parties tearing into the NDA government alleging that the ruling party was using the pandemic for political reasons. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said the announcement was in order as it was an election manifesto announcement. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that all people will be provided free of cost vaccines. An estimated Rs 500 odd will be spent on vaccination of each person, Sarangi told reporters after addressing a campaign meeting for the November 3 assembly by-poll in Balasore. Modi had in a televised adddress to the nation on October 20 said that Indian scientists are in the process of developing several vaccines that are at different stages of clinical trials and the results seem encouraging. Sarangi, the union minister of state for animal husbandry, dairy, fisheries and micro, small and medium enterprises spoke in reply to question raised by Odisha Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister, R P Swain. Swain had earlier in the day sought clarification from Dharmendra Pradhan and Sarangi, the two union ministers from Odisha questioning them for their silence on their party BJP's stand on free COVID-19 vaccination for the people of the state along the lines of the one being promised in Bihar. The governments of Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Puduchchery have already announced free of cost COVID vaccines for the people of their states, while Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has demanded free vaccine for all citizens across the country. Swain had tweeted "I am asking questions to two Odisha union ministers from Balasore soil to clarify as to why the people of the state will not get free of cost COVID vaccine. The union ministers should clarify BJPs stand on the corona vaccination in Odisha." On the state governments steps for vaccination, Swain said it has signed an agreement with a vaccine manufacturer and is committed to extending the facility to all people of the state. He, however, did not say whether the state government will provide the vaccine to the people free of cost. BJP deputy leader in Odisha Assembly Bishnu Charan Sethi said the Centre has been supporting Odisha fully during the pandemic and has granted Rs 22,000 crore for the purpose. "But large scale lapses have been detected in the utilisation of the fund," he alleged.

All citizens in India to get free COVID-19 vaccine: Union Minister Pratap Sarangi

Several countries are now engaged in initiatives aimed at working with vaccine manufacturers to provide countries worldwide equitable access to safe and effective vaccines.

Older adults may be most vulnerable to the coronavirus, but ending the pandemic will require vaccinating children, too.

Last week, Pfizer Inc. received permission to test its vaccine in U.S. kids as young as 12, one of only a handful of attempts around the world to start exploring if any experimental shots being pushed for adults also can protect children.

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As the largest global supplier of drugs and producer of 60% of the world’s vaccines, India has long been known as the “pharmacy of the world”.

And as the hunt for a covid vaccine is gaining momentum the country is playing a strategic and central role in it. Today Covaxin, the vaccine candidate developed by Bharat Biotech India Limited (BBIL) in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), has received approvals from India’s drug control authority, Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI's) Expert Committee for the initiation of the final and Phase III clinical trials.

According to the news reports, India’s government has set aside about 500 billion rupees ($7 billion) to vaccinate the world’s most populous country after China against the coronavirus, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration estimates an all-in cost of about $6-$7 per person in the nation of 1.3 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified as the details are private.&nbsp;

In India, the number of daily confirmed cases has dropped but this is not the time to let your guard down. Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated the message a few days ago. He urged caution ahead of the festival season until we find a vaccine, the mask is our best bet. Keep it on, and stay safe.

(With inputs from agencies)

Several countries are now engaged in initiatives aimed at working with vaccine manufacturers to provide countries worldwide equitable access to safe and effective vaccines.

Several countries are now engaged in initiatives aimed at working with vaccine manufacturers to provide countries worldwide equitable access to safe and effective vaccines. Older adults may be most vulnerable to the coronavirus, but ending the pandemic will require vaccinating children, too. Last week, Pfizer Inc. received permission to test its vaccine in U.S. kids as young as 12, one of only a handful of attempts around the world to start exploring if any experimental shots being pushed for adults also can protect children. × As the largest global supplier of drugs and producer of 60% of the world’s vaccines, India has long been known as the “pharmacy of the world”. And as the hunt for a covid vaccine is gaining momentum the country is playing a strategic and central role in it. Today Covaxin, the vaccine candidate developed by Bharat Biotech India Limited (BBIL) in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), has received approvals from India’s drug control authority, Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI's) Expert Committee for the initiation of the final and Phase III clinical trials. According to the news reports, India’s government has set aside about 500 billion rupees ($7 billion) to vaccinate the world’s most populous country after China against the coronavirus, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration estimates an all-in cost of about $6-$7 per person in the nation of 1.3 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified as the details are private. In India, the number of daily confirmed cases has dropped but this is not the time to let your guard down. Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated the message a few days ago. He urged caution ahead of the festival season until we find a vaccine, the mask is our best bet. Keep it on, and stay safe. (With inputs from agencies)

Gravitas: Coronavirus exit strategy depends on getting vaccine to whole world

A study claimed vaccines can take an average of 10 years to develop. But scientists may come up with a vaccine for the Wuhan Coronavirus in less than a year. Fast-tracking a vaccine has also raised the risks. WION's Palki Sharma tells you why the urgency could compromise the process.

Gravitas: Hunt for a vaccine, The hefty cost for cutting corners

The University of&nbsp;Oxford's Brazilian trial of its vaccine candidate will continue after the death of a volunteer, the university said on Wednesday, adding an independent review had revealed no safety concerns.

"Following careful assessment of this case in Brazil, there have been no concerns about the safety of the clinical trial and the independent review in addition to the Brazilian regulator have recommended that the trial should continue," a spokesman for the university said in a statement.

It is the first death reported in the various coronavirus vaccine trials taking place worldwide.

Media reports said the volunteer was a 28-year-old doctor working on the front lines of the pandemic who died of complications from Covid-19.

Brazilian newspaper Globo and international news agency Bloomberg said he was in the control group and had received a placebo rather than the test vaccine, citing sources close to the trials.

"Following careful assessment of this case in Brazil, there have been no concerns about the safety of the clinical trial, and the independent review in addition to the Brazilian regulator have recommended that the trial should continue,"&nbsp;Oxford&nbsp;said in a statement.

AstraZeneca said medical confidentiality meant it could not give details on any individual volunteer, but that independent review had "not led to any concerns about the continuation of the ongoing study."

Brazil's national health regulator, Anvisa, confirmed it had been notified of the case on October 19.

The D'Or Teaching and Research Institute (IDOR), which is helping organize the tests in Brazil, said the independent review had "raised no doubts about the safety of the study, and recommended it continue."

Oxford&nbsp;and AstraZeneca previously had to suspend testing of the vaccine in September when a volunteer in Britain developed an unexplained illness.

Trials resumed after British regulators and an independent review concluded the illness was not a side effect of the vaccine.

Half the volunteers in the final-stage clinical trial -- a double-blind, randomized, controlled study -- receive a placebo, IDOR said.

Around 8,000 volunteers have been vaccinated so far in Brazil, and more than 20,000 worldwide, it said.

Study participants must be doctors, nurses, or other health sector workers who come into regular contact with the virus.

The deceased volunteer was a young doctor who had been treating Covid-19 patients since March in the emergency rooms and intensive care units at two hospitals in Rio de Janeiro, Globo said.

He graduated from medical school last year, and was in good health prior to contracting the disease, family and friends told the newspaper.

The University of Oxford's Brazilian trial of its vaccine candidate will continue after the death of a volunteer, the university said on Wednesday, adding an independent review had revealed no safety concerns.

The University of Oxford's Brazilian trial of its vaccine candidate will continue after the death of a volunteer, the university said on Wednesday, adding an independent review had revealed no safety concerns. "Following careful assessment of this case in Brazil, there have been no concerns about the safety of the clinical trial and the independent review in addition to the Brazilian regulator have recommended that the trial should continue," a spokesman for the university said in a statement. It is the first death reported in the various coronavirus vaccine trials taking place worldwide. Media reports said the volunteer was a 28-year-old doctor working on the front lines of the pandemic who died of complications from Covid-19. Brazilian newspaper Globo and international news agency Bloomberg said he was in the control group and had received a placebo rather than the test vaccine, citing sources close to the trials. "Following careful assessment of this case in Brazil, there have been no concerns about the safety of the clinical trial, and the independent review in addition to the Brazilian regulator have recommended that the trial should continue," Oxford said in a statement. AstraZeneca said medical confidentiality meant it could not give details on any individual volunteer, but that independent review had "not led to any concerns about the continuation of the ongoing study." Brazil's national health regulator, Anvisa, confirmed it had been notified of the case on October 19. The D'Or Teaching and Research Institute (IDOR), which is helping organize the tests in Brazil, said the independent review had "raised no doubts about the safety of the study, and recommended it continue." Oxford and AstraZeneca previously had to suspend testing of the vaccine in September when a volunteer in Britain developed an unexplained illness. Trials resumed after British regulators and an independent review concluded the illness was not a side effect of the vaccine. Half the volunteers in the final-stage clinical trial -- a double-blind, randomized, controlled study -- receive a placebo, IDOR said. Around 8,000 volunteers have been vaccinated so far in Brazil, and more than 20,000 worldwide, it said. Study participants must be doctors, nurses, or other health sector workers who come into regular contact with the virus. The deceased volunteer was a young doctor who had been treating Covid-19 patients since March in the emergency rooms and intensive care units at two hospitals in Rio de Janeiro, Globo said. He graduated from medical school last year, and was in good health prior to contracting the disease, family and friends told the newspaper.

Oxford's Brazil vaccine trial to continue even after volunteer's death

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro and a high-ranking health official said on Wednesday the federal government will not buy a COVID-19 vaccine from China's Sinovac, one day after the Health Minister said it would be included in the nation's immunization program.

Bolsonaro drops plans to buy Chinese vaccine: Says, 'Its expensive and unscientific'

Five people have died after getting flu shots in South Korea in the past week, authorities said, raising concerns over the vaccine's safety just as the seasonal inoculation programme is expanded to head off potential COVID-19 complications.

Authorities said there was no reason to believe the deaths were linked to the vaccine but an investigation, including post mortems, was underway.

"It makes it hard for us to put out a categorical statement," Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip told a briefing on Wednesday about the deaths, which include a 17-year-old boy and a man in his 70s.

Coming just weeks after the rollout of the national vaccine programme was suspended over safety worries, the deaths have dominated headlines in South Korea.

Officials last month announced plans to procure 20 per cent&nbsp;more flu vaccines for the winter than the previous year to inoculate 30 million people in a bid to prevent the health system being overloaded by patients with flu and COVID-19 exposure.

However, the start of a free jab programme for around 19 million eligible people was suspended for three weeks after it was discovered that some 5 million doses, which need to be refrigerated, had been exposed to room temperature while being transported to a medical facility.

Boosting public trust in vaccines has become a major global challenge this year, as some countries rush to approve experimental COVID-19 vaccines before full safety and efficacy studies have been completed.

South Korea's flu vaccines are supplied by different drugmakers, including LG Chem Ltd and Boryung Biopharma Co. Ltd., a unit of Boryung Pharm Co. Ltd.. A Boryung official told Reuters the company was aware of the reported deaths, but had no immediate comment. LG Chem said the company would follow government advice.

A 17-year-old boy who died on Friday was the first death noted by officials to follow receipt of the vaccine. The boy died two days after receiving the flu shot in Incheon, near the capital Seoul.

A man in his 70s, who had Parkinson's disease and arrhythmia, was the most recent case. He died in Daegu on Wednesday, a day after receiving the flu vaccine. Daegu officials said the man had received vaccines since 2015 with no prior adverse reactions.

Officials said 8.3 million people have been inoculated with the free flu vaccine since it resumed on Oct. 13, with around 350 cases of adverse reactions reported. The highest number of deaths linked to the seasonal flu vaccination was six in 2005, according to Yonhap news agency.

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, trust in vaccines was a growing challenge for public health bodies. The World Health Organization named vaccine hesitancy as one of the top 10 global health threats for last year.

In South Korea, a poll earlier this month found that 62% of 2,548 respondents in Gyeonggi province, near Seoul, would not get vaccinated against COVID-19, even if a vaccine is approved, until all safety questions are fully answered.

Five people have died after getting flu shots in South Korea in the past week, authorities said, raising concerns over the vaccine's safety just as the seasonal inoculation programme is expanded to head off potential COVID-19 complications.

Five people have died after getting flu shots in South Korea in the past week, authorities said, raising concerns over the vaccine's safety just as the seasonal inoculation programme is expanded to head off potential COVID-19 complications. Authorities said there was no reason to believe the deaths were linked to the vaccine but an investigation, including post mortems, was underway. "It makes it hard for us to put out a categorical statement," Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip told a briefing on Wednesday about the deaths, which include a 17-year-old boy and a man in his 70s. Coming just weeks after the rollout of the national vaccine programme was suspended over safety worries, the deaths have dominated headlines in South Korea. Officials last month announced plans to procure 20 per cent more flu vaccines for the winter than the previous year to inoculate 30 million people in a bid to prevent the health system being overloaded by patients with flu and COVID-19 exposure. However, the start of a free jab programme for around 19 million eligible people was suspended for three weeks after it was discovered that some 5 million doses, which need to be refrigerated, had been exposed to room temperature while being transported to a medical facility. Boosting public trust in vaccines has become a major global challenge this year, as some countries rush to approve experimental COVID-19 vaccines before full safety and efficacy studies have been completed. South Korea's flu vaccines are supplied by different drugmakers, including LG Chem Ltd and Boryung Biopharma Co. Ltd., a unit of Boryung Pharm Co. Ltd.. A Boryung official told Reuters the company was aware of the reported deaths, but had no immediate comment. LG Chem said the company would follow government advice. A 17-year-old boy who died on Friday was the first death noted by officials to follow receipt of the vaccine. The boy died two days after receiving the flu shot in Incheon, near the capital Seoul. A man in his 70s, who had Parkinson's disease and arrhythmia, was the most recent case. He died in Daegu on Wednesday, a day after receiving the flu vaccine. Daegu officials said the man had received vaccines since 2015 with no prior adverse reactions. Officials said 8.3 million people have been inoculated with the free flu vaccine since it resumed on Oct. 13, with around 350 cases of adverse reactions reported. The highest number of deaths linked to the seasonal flu vaccination was six in 2005, according to Yonhap news agency. Even before the coronavirus pandemic, trust in vaccines was a growing challenge for public health bodies. The World Health Organization named vaccine hesitancy as one of the top 10 global health threats for last year. In South Korea, a poll earlier this month found that 62% of 2,548 respondents in Gyeonggi province, near Seoul, would not get vaccinated against COVID-19, even if a vaccine is approved, until all safety questions are fully answered.

Five South Koreans die after getting flu shots, sparking vaccine fears

Scientists at Imperial College London plan to deliberately infect volunteers with the coronavirus early next year, launching the world’s first effort to study how vaccinated people respond to being intentionally exposed to the virus and opening up a new, uncertain path to identifying an effective vaccine.

The hotly contested strategy, known as a human challenge trial, could potentially shave crucial time in the race to winnow a number of vaccine candidates. Rather than conducting the sort of trials now underway around the world, in which scientists wait for vaccinated people to encounter the virus in their homes and communities, researchers would purposely infect them in a hospital isolation unit.

Scientists have used this method for decades to test vaccines for typhoid, cholera, and other diseases, even asking volunteers in the case of malaria to expose their arms to boxes full of mosquitoes to be bitten and infected. But whereas the infected could be cured of those diseases, COVID-19 has few widely used treatments and no known cure, putting the scientists in charge of Britain’s study in largely uncharted ethical territory.

Starting with tiny doses, the scientists will first administer the virus to small groups of volunteers who have not been vaccinated at all, in order to determine the lowest dose of the virus that will reliably infect them. That process, scheduled to begin in January at a hospital in north London, will be followed by tests in which volunteers are given a vaccine and then intentionally exposed to this carefully calibrated dose of the virus.

The study will be led by scientists with Imperial College London and hVivo, a company specializing in human challenge trials. It still requires approval from Britain’s drug regulation agency, but the government said on Tuesday that it would allot 34 million pounds ($44 million) in public funding.

The first round of volunteers, up to 90 healthy adults ages 18 to 30, will have the virus dripped into their noses without having been vaccinated. If not enough participants become infected, the scientists will try to expose these early-stage volunteers to a higher dose, repeating the process until they have identified the necessary exposure level of the virus.

Only once the scientists decide on a dose, which they intend to do by late spring, will they begin the process of comparing vaccine candidates by immunizing the next group of volunteers and then exposing them to the virus.

Some vaccine candidates now undergoing trials may already have received approval by then, but researchers hope a challenge trial will add direct evidence of efficacy and help them compare the performance of different vaccines.

“Deliberately infecting volunteers with a known human pathogen is never undertaken lightly,” said professor Peter Openshaw, an immunologist and co-investigator on the study. “However, such studies are enormously informative about a disease, even one so well studied as COVID-19.”

Many important questions about the study remain unanswered. The British government’s vaccine task force, which will select the first vaccine candidates to include in the human challenge trial, has not yet announced its plans.

The idea of human challenge trials has already been met with a lukewarm reception by several leading vaccine makers, including Johnson &amp;amp; Johnson and Moderna, leaving analysts uncertain as to which companies’ vaccines will end up being included.

And it is not yet clear how regulators in Europe or the United States will evaluate results from human challenge trials, or whether such studies will accelerate the vaccine approval process.

For proponents of the strategy, saving lives by potentially speeding the development of a vaccine and advancing the understanding of the virus is a moral imperative. Those scientists and bioethicists say that the risk of the coronavirus seriously sickening or killing young, healthy volunteers — the sort of people who would be infected — is low enough as to be outweighed by the possibility of saving tens of thousands of lives.

“I’m surprised they haven’t been used earlier,” professor Julian Savulescu, the director of the Oxford Uehiro Center for Practical Ethics, said of human challenge trials on coronavirus vaccines. “Every day that you delay developing a vaccine and effective treatment, another 5,000 people die. It’d be useful for screening out less effective vaccines and for understanding the immune response.”

Skeptics have urged scientists to wait or to forgo the approach entirely. There have been unexpected and unexplained cases of severe illness in young patients, and the long-term consequences of infection are unknown, with the pandemic having started only months ago. It is also difficult to extrapolate widely from a human challenge trial. It is unclear, for example, whether studies in healthy young adults could reliably predict the efficacy of a vaccine in older adults or people with preexisting conditions.

Scientists have also warned about the challenges of mimicking real-world transmission in a laboratory. That could make it difficult for the researchers to know whether a vaccine that may protect volunteers from deliberate exposure in a hospital would do the same for people encountering the virus at work or at home.

“Is it breathed out, sneezed out, do you sniff it all in one fell chunk of the virus coming at you?” said John Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College. “No one really knows. It’s so hard to model. Squirting a bolus of virus into the nose is an imperfect model of natural transmission.”

The debate has split an advisory panel to the World Health Organization, which published guidelines about the safest way to conduct challenge trials in June. In the United States, the National Institutes of Health said that it was not planning to support such trials and that randomized clinical trials were sufficient.

But Britain took a different view.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, facing a barrage of criticism for his handling of a pandemic that has left Britain with the highest death toll in Europe, has tried to cast the country as being at the forefront of scientific progress on the coronavirus. Researchers at the University of Oxford have developed one of the leading vaccine candidates, as well as one of the most promising treatments, the steroid called dexamethasone.

Some scientists questioned whether the fierce competition to be the first to develop an effective vaccine had unduly influenced plans for a human challenge trial.

“There’s unquestionably vaccine nationalism involved,” Moore said. “It’s a race for money and glory. That’s the reality of it.”

The scientists overseeing the trial said they would use the antiviral medicine remdesivir to treat volunteers as soon as they began detecting viral infection, even before the onset of symptoms. But that drug has been found to have only modest benefit. And some analysts said the treatment, while necessary, would limit researchers’ ability to determine whether the vaccine candidates being evaluated reduced the severity of illness.

The volunteers in London will be paid roughly Britain’s minimum wage, which is about 9 pounds ($11) per hour, for their time in taking part in the trial and their two to three weeks in mandatory quarantine. The researchers said they were wary of offering additional incentives that could cloud the judgment of volunteers.

Thousands of people in Britain have already expressed interest in taking part in challenge trials for the coronavirus through an American group, 1Day Sooner, that advocates for such studies.

But with the virus now surging again across Europe and parts of the United States, some scientists have argued there is no shortage of people enrolled in ordinary vaccine trials being exposed to the virus under natural conditions.

“This is not a rare disease,” said Dr. Paul Offit, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory panel. “You can probably find a hot spot to do a vaccine trial.”

Scientists at Imperial College London plan to deliberately infect volunteers with the coronavirus early next year, launching the world’s first effort to study how vaccinated people respond to being intentionally exposed to the virus and opening up a new, uncertain path to identifying an effective vaccine.

Scientists at Imperial College London plan to deliberately infect volunteers with the coronavirus early next year, launching the world’s first effort to study how vaccinated people respond to being intentionally exposed to the virus and opening up a new, uncertain path to identifying an effective vaccine. The hotly contested strategy, known as a human challenge trial, could potentially shave crucial time in the race to winnow a number of vaccine candidates. Rather than conducting the sort of trials now underway around the world, in which scientists wait for vaccinated people to encounter the virus in their homes and communities, researchers would purposely infect them in a hospital isolation unit. Scientists have used this method for decades to test vaccines for typhoid, cholera, and other diseases, even asking volunteers in the case of malaria to expose their arms to boxes full of mosquitoes to be bitten and infected. But whereas the infected could be cured of those diseases, COVID-19 has few widely used treatments and no known cure, putting the scientists in charge of Britain’s study in largely uncharted ethical territory. Starting with tiny doses, the scientists will first administer the virus to small groups of volunteers who have not been vaccinated at all, in order to determine the lowest dose of the virus that will reliably infect them. That process, scheduled to begin in January at a hospital in north London, will be followed by tests in which volunteers are given a vaccine and then intentionally exposed to this carefully calibrated dose of the virus. The study will be led by scientists with Imperial College London and hVivo, a company specializing in human challenge trials. It still requires approval from Britain’s drug regulation agency, but the government said on Tuesday that it would allot 34 million pounds ($44 million) in public funding. The first round of volunteers, up to 90 healthy adults ages 18 to 30, will have the virus dripped into their noses without having been vaccinated. If not enough participants become infected, the scientists will try to expose these early-stage volunteers to a higher dose, repeating the process until they have identified the necessary exposure level of the virus. Only once the scientists decide on a dose, which they intend to do by late spring, will they begin the process of comparing vaccine candidates by immunizing the next group of volunteers and then exposing them to the virus. Some vaccine candidates now undergoing trials may already have received approval by then, but researchers hope a challenge trial will add direct evidence of efficacy and help them compare the performance of different vaccines. “Deliberately infecting volunteers with a known human pathogen is never undertaken lightly,” said professor Peter Openshaw, an immunologist and co-investigator on the study. “However, such studies are enormously informative about a disease, even one so well studied as COVID-19.” Many important questions about the study remain unanswered. The British government’s vaccine task force, which will select the first vaccine candidates to include in the human challenge trial, has not yet announced its plans. The idea of human challenge trials has already been met with a lukewarm reception by several leading vaccine makers, including Johnson &amp; Johnson and Moderna, leaving analysts uncertain as to which companies’ vaccines will end up being included. And it is not yet clear how regulators in Europe or the United States will evaluate results from human challenge trials, or whether such studies will accelerate the vaccine approval process. For proponents of the strategy, saving lives by potentially speeding the development of a vaccine and advancing the understanding of the virus is a moral imperative. Those scientists and bioethicists say that the risk of the coronavirus seriously sickening or killing young, healthy volunteers — the sort of people who would be infected — is low enough as to be outweighed by the possibility of saving tens of thousands of lives. “I’m surprised they haven’t been used earlier,” professor Julian Savulescu, the director of the Oxford Uehiro Center for Practical Ethics, said of human challenge trials on coronavirus vaccines. “Every day that you delay developing a vaccine and effective treatment, another 5,000 people die. It’d be useful for screening out less effective vaccines and for understanding the immune response.” Skeptics have urged scientists to wait or to forgo the approach entirely. There have been unexpected and unexplained cases of severe illness in young patients, and the long-term consequences of infection are unknown, with the pandemic having started only months ago. It is also difficult to extrapolate widely from a human challenge trial. It is unclear, for example, whether studies in healthy young adults could reliably predict the efficacy of a vaccine in older adults or people with preexisting conditions. Scientists have also warned about the challenges of mimicking real-world transmission in a laboratory. That could make it difficult for the researchers to know whether a vaccine that may protect volunteers from deliberate exposure in a hospital would do the same for people encountering the virus at work or at home. “Is it breathed out, sneezed out, do you sniff it all in one fell chunk of the virus coming at you?” said John Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College. “No one really knows. It’s so hard to model. Squirting a bolus of virus into the nose is an imperfect model of natural transmission.” The debate has split an advisory panel to the World Health Organization, which published guidelines about the safest way to conduct challenge trials in June. In the United States, the National Institutes of Health said that it was not planning to support such trials and that randomized clinical trials were sufficient. But Britain took a different view. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, facing a barrage of criticism for his handling of a pandemic that has left Britain with the highest death toll in Europe, has tried to cast the country as being at the forefront of scientific progress on the coronavirus. Researchers at the University of Oxford have developed one of the leading vaccine candidates, as well as one of the most promising treatments, the steroid called dexamethasone. Some scientists questioned whether the fierce competition to be the first to develop an effective vaccine had unduly influenced plans for a human challenge trial. “There’s unquestionably vaccine nationalism involved,” Moore said. “It’s a race for money and glory. That’s the reality of it.” The scientists overseeing the trial said they would use the antiviral medicine remdesivir to treat volunteers as soon as they began detecting viral infection, even before the onset of symptoms. But that drug has been found to have only modest benefit. And some analysts said the treatment, while necessary, would limit researchers’ ability to determine whether the vaccine candidates being evaluated reduced the severity of illness. The volunteers in London will be paid roughly Britain’s minimum wage, which is about 9 pounds ($11) per hour, for their time in taking part in the trial and their two to three weeks in mandatory quarantine. The researchers said they were wary of offering additional incentives that could cloud the judgment of volunteers. Thousands of people in Britain have already expressed interest in taking part in challenge trials for the coronavirus through an American group, 1Day Sooner, that advocates for such studies. But with the virus now surging again across Europe and parts of the United States, some scientists have argued there is no shortage of people enrolled in ordinary vaccine trials being exposed to the virus under natural conditions. “This is not a rare disease,” said Dr. Paul Offit, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory panel. “You can probably find a hot spot to do a vaccine trial.”

To test virus vaccines, UK study will intentionally infect volunteers

China's state-run company&nbsp;Sinopharm is offering free COVID-19 vaccine to students&nbsp;going abroad for higher studies.

Sinopharm is&nbsp;Group Co Ltd&nbsp;is currently developing two coronavirus&nbsp;vaccines.

The move by China National Biotec Group Co (CNBG) is aimed at boosting public confidence in homegrown inoculations, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a company website and some students who applied for it.

The announcement of the company distributing vaccines to students appeared on a website where people could sign up to receive it, the newspaper reported.

The website said on Monday that 481,613 people had taken the vaccine while an additional 93,653 had applied to be inoculated, according to the report.

The website was down starting Tuesday, the report said, adding that it was "under maintenance".

CNBG did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.

China launched a vaccine emergency use programme in July, offering three experimental shots developed by a unit of state pharmaceutical giant China National Pharmaceutical Group and US-listed Sinovac Biotech.

A fourth vaccine being developed by CanSino Biologics was approved for use by the Chinese military in June.

On the other hand, an Abu Dhabi-based artificial intelligence and cloud computing company called Group 42 is nearing the end of Phase III clinical trials of a vaccine in partnership with CNBG.

&nbsp;

China's state-run company Sinopharm is offering free COVID-19 vaccine to students going abroad for higher studies. Sinopharm is Group Co Ltd is currently developing two coronavirus vaccines.

China's state-run company Sinopharm is offering free COVID-19 vaccine to students going abroad for higher studies. Sinopharm is Group Co Ltd is currently developing two coronavirus vaccines. The move by China National Biotec Group Co (CNBG) is aimed at boosting public confidence in homegrown inoculations, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a company website and some students who applied for it. The announcement of the company distributing vaccines to students appeared on a website where people could sign up to receive it, the newspaper reported. The website said on Monday that 481,613 people had taken the vaccine while an additional 93,653 had applied to be inoculated, according to the report. The website was down starting Tuesday, the report said, adding that it was "under maintenance". CNBG did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment. China launched a vaccine emergency use programme in July, offering three experimental shots developed by a unit of state pharmaceutical giant China National Pharmaceutical Group and US-listed Sinovac Biotech. A fourth vaccine being developed by CanSino Biologics was approved for use by the Chinese military in June. On the other hand, an Abu Dhabi-based artificial intelligence and cloud computing company called Group 42 is nearing the end of Phase III clinical trials of a vaccine in partnership with CNBG.

Chinese company Sinopharm offering free COVID-19 vaccine to students

Amid growing concern over access to Covid-19 medical products, Moderna has decided not to enforce its patent rights related to its experimental vaccine. Watch report.

Moderna vows not to enforce Covid-19 patents: WHO welcomes move

An expert panel at the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has asked Dr Reddy's Laboratories to submit a revised protocol for conducting both phase-2 and 3 human clinical trials in India for the Russian vaccine, Sputnik V, against COVID-19, sources said.

The Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company had applied to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) late last week, seeking permission to conduct phase-3 human clinical trials of the Russian vaccine.

The Subject Expert Committee (SEC) on COVID-19 at the CDSCO, which held its meeting on Monday, deliberated on the application and asked the firm to submit a revised protocol stating it will have to conduct combined phase 2 and 3 clinical trials, the sources told PTI.

The firm has been asked to provide some other information as well.

"It means that Dr Reddy's laboratories will have to submit a new application. According to the SEC, they have to conduct both phase-2 and 3 clinical trials and cannot directly hold phase-3 trial for the vaccine in India," a source said.

The Indian pharma giant has collaborated with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to conduct clinical trials of Sputnik V vaccine as well as for its distribution.

Upon regulatory approval in India, RDIF shall supply to drug maker Dr Reddy's 100 million doses of the vaccine, the firm had said last month.

According to sources, it would be multi-centre, observer-blind, randomised controlled study.

Sources said, meanwhile, the phase -3 trial of Sputnik V is underway in Russia since September 1 on around 40,000 subjects.

Sputnik V has been developed by the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology and RDIF.

Currently two indigenously developed vaccine candidates, one by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with ICMR and another one by Zydus Cadila Ltd, are in the phase 2 of the human clinical trials.

The Pune-based Serum Institute of India, which has partnered with AstraZeneca for manufacturing the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine candidate also is conducting Phase 2 and 3 human clinical trials of the candidate in India.

An expert panel at the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has asked Dr Reddy's Laboratories to submit a revised protocol for conducting both phase-2 and 3 human clinical trials in India for the Russian vaccine, Sputnik V, against COVID-19, sources said.

An expert panel at the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has asked Dr Reddy's Laboratories to submit a revised protocol for conducting both phase-2 and 3 human clinical trials in India for the Russian vaccine, Sputnik V, against COVID-19, sources said. The Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company had applied to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) late last week, seeking permission to conduct phase-3 human clinical trials of the Russian vaccine. The Subject Expert Committee (SEC) on COVID-19 at the CDSCO, which held its meeting on Monday, deliberated on the application and asked the firm to submit a revised protocol stating it will have to conduct combined phase 2 and 3 clinical trials, the sources told PTI. The firm has been asked to provide some other information as well. "It means that Dr Reddy's laboratories will have to submit a new application. According to the SEC, they have to conduct both phase-2 and 3 clinical trials and cannot directly hold phase-3 trial for the vaccine in India," a source said. The Indian pharma giant has collaborated with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to conduct clinical trials of Sputnik V vaccine as well as for its distribution. Upon regulatory approval in India, RDIF shall supply to drug maker Dr Reddy's 100 million doses of the vaccine, the firm had said last month. According to sources, it would be multi-centre, observer-blind, randomised controlled study. Sources said, meanwhile, the phase -3 trial of Sputnik V is underway in Russia since September 1 on around 40,000 subjects. Sputnik V has been developed by the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology and RDIF. Currently two indigenously developed vaccine candidates, one by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with ICMR and another one by Zydus Cadila Ltd, are in the phase 2 of the human clinical trials. The Pune-based Serum Institute of India, which has partnered with AstraZeneca for manufacturing the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine candidate also is conducting Phase 2 and 3 human clinical trials of the candidate in India.

Dr Reddy's asked to reapply for phase two, three clinical trials of Russian COVID-19 vaccine

India has assured Myanmar it would give the country priority on coronavirus vaccine and speed up infrastructure projects in the country during the visit of Army Chief General MM Naravane and Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla's two-day visit.

India assures Myanmar on COVID-19 vaccine, speeding up infra projects

Russia expects to register a second potential vaccine against COVID-19 by October 15. Vaccine has been named as 'Epivaccorona'.

COVID-19: Russia completes clinical trials of second vaccine

Serum Institute of India will make up to 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses for poorer countries, including India, next year, as the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation and GAVI vaccines alliance have doubled their funding, the company said on Tuesday.

The extra funds will help Serum boost manufacturing of the vaccine candidates from AstraZeneca Plc and Novavax Inc, for delivery under the COVAX scheme as early as the first half of 2021.

The collaboration takes forward an initial agreement signed in August by Serum, GAVI and the Gates Foundation for 100 million doses to be priced at a maximum of $3 each.

The total funding provided is now $300 million, and the expanded collaboration also has an option for the provision of additional doses as needed.

The so-called COVAX plan, co-led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and GAVI, aims to deliver 2 billion vaccine doses around the world by the end of 2021. More than 150 nations have joined the plan, though China and the United States have not signed up.

The global death toll from COVID-19 passed 1 million on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally.

India, which leads the world in the daily average number of new infections reported, saw its coronavirus case tally rise to 6.15 million as of Tuesday.

Serum Institute of India will make up to 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses for poorer countries, including India, next year, as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and GAVI vaccines alliance have doubled their funding, the company said on Tuesday.

Serum Institute of India will make up to 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses for poorer countries, including India, next year, as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and GAVI vaccines alliance have doubled their funding, the company said on Tuesday. The extra funds will help Serum boost manufacturing of the vaccine candidates from AstraZeneca Plc and Novavax Inc, for delivery under the COVAX scheme as early as the first half of 2021. The collaboration takes forward an initial agreement signed in August by Serum, GAVI and the Gates Foundation for 100 million doses to be priced at a maximum of $3 each. The total funding provided is now $300 million, and the expanded collaboration also has an option for the provision of additional doses as needed. The so-called COVAX plan, co-led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and GAVI, aims to deliver 2 billion vaccine doses around the world by the end of 2021. More than 150 nations have joined the plan, though China and the United States have not signed up. The global death toll from COVID-19 passed 1 million on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally. India, which leads the world in the daily average number of new infections reported, saw its coronavirus case tally rise to 6.15 million as of Tuesday.

Serum Institute of India to boost production of COVID-19 vaccine doses to 200 million

A Chinese developed Coronavirus vaccine could be ready for public use by the end of this year. Watch the report to know more

China developed Coronavirus vaccine could get nod this year

American life finds itself in the middle of a plague that answers to no calendar, ideology or political objective. Just weeks away from the #USElection, the arrival of a vaccine takes the centre stage in American politics.

Vaccine: A guarantee to election success?

Wealthy nations that have just 13 per cent of the global population have already bought half of the potential drugs that are leading the Covid-19 vaccines race, a report by Oxfam claimed.&nbsp;

The study analysed agreements signed by five leading vaccine candidates and pharmaceuticals based on data shared by the analytics organisation Airfinity.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-election-2020-donald-trump-says-top-health-expert-was-confused-about-vaccine-but-not-him-328048">Trump says top health expert was 'confused' about vaccine, but not him</a>

"Access to a life-saving vaccine shouldn't depend on where you live or how much money you have," said Robert Silverman from Oxfam America, as quoted by news agency AFP.&nbsp;

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/dcgi-gives-go-ahead-to-serum-institute-for-covid-19-vaccine-trials-in-india-327931">DCGI gives go-ahead to Serum Institute for Covid-19 vaccine trials in India</a>

"The development and approval of a safe and effective vaccine is crucial, but equally important is making sure the vaccines are available and affordable to everyone. Covid-19 anywhere is Covid-19 everywhere."

The study found that the production capacity of the vaccines developed by AstraZeneca, Gamaleya/Sputnik, Moderna, Pfizer and Sinovac is 5.9 billion doses, which it said is enough for the global population of about 3 million, considering two shots to one individual will be enough.&nbsp;

It said, developed countries and regions, including the US, the UK, European Union, Australia, Hong Kong and Macau, Japan, Switzerland and Israel have notched deals for 2.7 billion (51 per cent) &nbsp;doses out of the total 5.3 billion doses so far.

The remaining 2.6 billion doses have been signed by developing countries, which include India, Bangladesh, China, Brazil, Indonesia and Mexico.&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

Wealthy nations that have just 13 per cent of the global population have already bought half of the potential drugs that are leading the Covid-19 vaccines race, a report by Oxfam claimed.

Wealthy nations that have just 13 per cent of the global population have already bought half of the potential drugs that are leading the Covid-19 vaccines race, a report by Oxfam claimed. The study analysed agreements signed by five leading vaccine candidates and pharmaceuticals based on data shared by the analytics organisation Airfinity. Also read | Trump says top health expert was 'confused' about vaccine, but not him "Access to a life-saving vaccine shouldn't depend on where you live or how much money you have," said Robert Silverman from Oxfam America, as quoted by news agency AFP. Also read | DCGI gives go-ahead to Serum Institute for Covid-19 vaccine trials in India "The development and approval of a safe and effective vaccine is crucial, but equally important is making sure the vaccines are available and affordable to everyone. Covid-19 anywhere is Covid-19 everywhere." The study found that the production capacity of the vaccines developed by AstraZeneca, Gamaleya/Sputnik, Moderna, Pfizer and Sinovac is 5.9 billion doses, which it said is enough for the global population of about 3 million, considering two shots to one individual will be enough. It said, developed countries and regions, including the US, the UK, European Union, Australia, Hong Kong and Macau, Japan, Switzerland and Israel have notched deals for 2.7 billion (51 per cent) doses out of the total 5.3 billion doses so far. The remaining 2.6 billion doses have been signed by developing countries, which include India, Bangladesh, China, Brazil, Indonesia and Mexico.

Rich nations with 13% population signed deals for getting over half of Covid-19 vaccines: Study

The United Arab Emirates on Monday granted emergency approval for use of a coronavirus vaccine, six weeks after human trials in the Gulf Arab state started.

A phase III trial of a COVID-19 inactivated vaccine developed by Chinese state-owned pharmaceutical company Sinopham began in the&nbsp;UAE&nbsp;in July and is yet to be completed.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/after-russia-these-covid-19-vaccines-set-to-unveil-soon-319760">After Russia, these COVID-19 vaccines set to unveil soon!</a>

"The vaccine will be available to our first line of defense heroes who are at the highest risk of contracting the virus," said the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority in a tweet.

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The vaccine will be available to our first line of defense heroes who are at the highest risk of contracting the virus, in order to protect them from any dangers and provide safety precautions.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CommitToWin?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CommitToWin</a>
— NCEMA UAE (@NCEMAUAE) <a href="https://twitter.com/NCEMAUAE/status/1305522427724795906?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 14, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The announcement comes amid a surge in new COVID-19 cases in the&nbsp;UAE, which reported 1,007 cases on Saturday, its highest since the start of the pandemic. There were 777 new cases on Monday.

Emergency use of the vaccine, which is still being tested, was granted after a set criteria and after it had been tested on 31,000 volunteers, it said.

Mild and expected side effects occurred but there have been no severe side effects, the agency said without specifying. It added a thousand people suffering from chronic diseases who took part saw no complications.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uaes-largest-banking-group-signs-first-deal-with-israel-327595" hreflang="en">UAE's largest banking group signs first deal with Israel</a>

Sinopharm secured approval for the trial in late June. The experimental vaccine passed Phases I and II of clinical trials with 100% of volunteers generating antibodies after two doses in 28 days, an Abu Dhabi government statement said in July.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, inactivated vaccines - made with either inactivated (killed) viruses or with a protein from the virus - are well known and have been used against diseases such as influenza and measles.

Russia in August become the first country in the world to grant regulatory approval to a coronavirus vaccine, after less than two months of human testing.

The United Arab Emirates on Monday granted emergency approval for use of a coronavirus vaccine, six weeks after human trials in the Gulf Arab state started. A phase III trial of a COVID-19 inactivated vaccine developed by Chinese state-owned pharmaceutical company Sinopham began in the UAE in July and is yet to be completed.

The United Arab Emirates on Monday granted emergency approval for use of a coronavirus vaccine, six weeks after human trials in the Gulf Arab state started. A phase III trial of a COVID-19 inactivated vaccine developed by Chinese state-owned pharmaceutical company Sinopham began in the UAE in July and is yet to be completed. Also read: After Russia, these COVID-19 vaccines set to unveil soon! "The vaccine will be available to our first line of defense heroes who are at the highest risk of contracting the virus," said the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority in a tweet. The vaccine will be available to our first line of defense heroes who are at the highest risk of contracting the virus, in order to protect them from any dangers and provide safety precautions.#CommitToWin — NCEMA UAE (@NCEMAUAE) September 14, 2020 × The announcement comes amid a surge in new COVID-19 cases in the UAE, which reported 1,007 cases on Saturday, its highest since the start of the pandemic. There were 777 new cases on Monday. Emergency use of the vaccine, which is still being tested, was granted after a set criteria and after it had been tested on 31,000 volunteers, it said. Mild and expected side effects occurred but there have been no severe side effects, the agency said without specifying. It added a thousand people suffering from chronic diseases who took part saw no complications. Also read: UAE's largest banking group signs first deal with Israel Sinopharm secured approval for the trial in late June. The experimental vaccine passed Phases I and II of clinical trials with 100% of volunteers generating antibodies after two doses in 28 days, an Abu Dhabi government statement said in July. According to the Centers for Disease Control, inactivated vaccines - made with either inactivated (killed) viruses or with a protein from the virus - are well known and have been used against diseases such as influenza and measles. Russia in August become the first country in the world to grant regulatory approval to a coronavirus vaccine, after less than two months of human testing.

UAE announces emergency approval for use of COVID-19 vaccine

Around 50,000 people, across several countries, are participating in phase 3 clinical trials of a COVID vaccine developed by the China National Biotec Group

Tracking COVID-19 vaccine: China's phase 3 vaccine proceedings going smooth

In a big blow to the expectations regarding the covid-19&nbsp;vaccine, the Serum Institute of India has said adequate coronavirus vaccine will not be available for everybody in the world to be immunised until the end of 2024.

The chief executive of the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines, Adar Poonawalla, has said dampened the hopes of a COVID-19 vaccine by year-end in an interview with the Financial Times. He said that pharma firms were not ramping up production capacity swiftly to be able to innoculate the world population in less duration.

“It’s going to take four to five years until everyone gets the vaccine on this planet,” Poonawalla was quoted as saying. He had earlier predicted that if the coronavirus shot is a two-dose vaccine, as is the case with measles or rotavirus, then the world would require 15 billion doses.

The Serum Institute has partnered with five international pharmaceutical companies, including AstraZeneca and Novavax, to develop a coronavirus vaccine. The firm may also tie-up with Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute to produce the Sputnik vaccine.

The institute has pledged to manufacture one billion doses, out of which it has promised 50% to India.

The firm will, as part of its agreement with AstraZeneca, seek to produce Covid-19 vaccine doses that cost closed $3 for 68 countries and under its deal with Novavax, for 92 countries.

Poonawalla had in April ordered 600m glass vials and other particulars to gear up for the mass manufacturing of the vaccine.

Meanwhile, as of Tuesday morning, the total number of coronavirus cases stood at 29,281,638 and the fatalities rose to 928,423, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed in its latest update.

In a big blow to the expectations regarding the covid-19 vaccine, the Serum Institute of India has said adequate coronavirus vaccine will not be available for everybody in the world to be immunised until the end of 2024.

In a big blow to the expectations regarding the covid-19 vaccine, the Serum Institute of India has said adequate coronavirus vaccine will not be available for everybody in the world to be immunised until the end of 2024. The chief executive of the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines, Adar Poonawalla, has said dampened the hopes of a COVID-19 vaccine by year-end in an interview with the Financial Times. He said that pharma firms were not ramping up production capacity swiftly to be able to innoculate the world population in less duration. “It’s going to take four to five years until everyone gets the vaccine on this planet,” Poonawalla was quoted as saying. He had earlier predicted that if the coronavirus shot is a two-dose vaccine, as is the case with measles or rotavirus, then the world would require 15 billion doses. The Serum Institute has partnered with five international pharmaceutical companies, including AstraZeneca and Novavax, to develop a coronavirus vaccine. The firm may also tie-up with Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute to produce the Sputnik vaccine. The institute has pledged to manufacture one billion doses, out of which it has promised 50% to India. The firm will, as part of its agreement with AstraZeneca, seek to produce Covid-19 vaccine doses that cost closed $3 for 68 countries and under its deal with Novavax, for 92 countries. Poonawalla had in April ordered 600m glass vials and other particulars to gear up for the mass manufacturing of the vaccine. Meanwhile, as of Tuesday morning, the total number of coronavirus cases stood at 29,281,638 and the fatalities rose to 928,423, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed in its latest update.

Coronavirus vaccine won’t be available to everyone before 2024 end: India's Serum Institute chief

US&nbsp;drugmaker&nbsp;Pfizer's chief&nbsp;Albert&nbsp;Bourla on Sunday said it is ''likely'' the coronavirus vaccine will be deployed to all&nbsp;Americans by the end of this year.

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech hope to wrap up final-stage Phase III trials of their Covid-19 vaccine candidate as early as next month.

Also see:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/after-russia-these-covid-19-vaccines-set-to-unveil-soon-319760">After Russia, these COVID-19 vaccines set to unveil soon!</a>

The United States has signed&nbsp;a $1.95 billion agreement with US pharma giant Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech for 100 million doses of their experimental COVID-19 vaccine, part of an aggressive push to start immunizing Americans early next year.

It is the biggest deal to date under Operation Warp Speed, intended to accelerate the development, manufacturing, and distribution of coronavirus vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics.

The comments came after it was revealed that Washington has urged US states to get ready for a potential Covid-19 vaccine rollout by November 1, sparking concerns President Donald Trump's administration is rushing to begin distributing a vaccine before the November 3 elections.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/is-trump-pressurising-fda-to-issue-a-coronavirus-vaccine-before-completing-trials-324226">Is Trump pressurising FDA to issue a coronavirus vaccine before completing trials?</a>

Pfizer has enrolled 23,000 patients in vaccine tests as of Wednesday (September 2), its Chief Executive&nbsp;Albert&nbsp;Bourla&nbsp;said in an online briefing sponsored by drug industry group International Federation of Pharmaceuticals Manufacturers and&nbsp;Association.

Bourla&nbsp;also said that political pressure would not interfere in the company's approval of the vaccine.

"We will never ourselves submit for authorisation or approval any vaccine before we feel that it is safe and effective," he explained.

Pfizer has already manufactured hundreds of thousands of doses of the vaccine candidate, including at a plant in Belgium,&nbsp;Bourla&nbsp;said. The US&nbsp;drugmaker is in the race to come up with a vaccine with its partner, Germany's BioNTech.

Across the world, governments are hoping to announce a vaccine as soon as possible and roll out treatments for the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 860,000 people and infected over 26 million.

But the sense of urgency has raised fears that companies and regulators might rush though testing meant to ensure that vaccines or treatments can be used safely and will actually be effective against the disease.

US drugmaker Pfizer's chief Albert Bourla on Sunday said it is ''likely'' the coronavirus vaccine will be deployed to all Americans by the end of this year. Pfizer and its partner BioNTech hope to wrap up final-stage Phase III trials of their Covid-19 vaccine candidate as early as next month.

US drugmaker Pfizer's chief Albert Bourla on Sunday said it is ''likely'' the coronavirus vaccine will be deployed to all Americans by the end of this year. Pfizer and its partner BioNTech hope to wrap up final-stage Phase III trials of their Covid-19 vaccine candidate as early as next month. Also see: After Russia, these COVID-19 vaccines set to unveil soon! The United States has signed a $1.95 billion agreement with US pharma giant Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech for 100 million doses of their experimental COVID-19 vaccine, part of an aggressive push to start immunizing Americans early next year. It is the biggest deal to date under Operation Warp Speed, intended to accelerate the development, manufacturing, and distribution of coronavirus vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics. The comments came after it was revealed that Washington has urged US states to get ready for a potential Covid-19 vaccine rollout by November 1, sparking concerns President Donald Trump's administration is rushing to begin distributing a vaccine before the November 3 elections. Also read: Is Trump pressurising FDA to issue a coronavirus vaccine before completing trials? Pfizer has enrolled 23,000 patients in vaccine tests as of Wednesday (September 2), its Chief Executive Albert Bourla said in an online briefing sponsored by drug industry group International Federation of Pharmaceuticals Manufacturers and Association. Bourla also said that political pressure would not interfere in the company's approval of the vaccine. "We will never ourselves submit for authorisation or approval any vaccine before we feel that it is safe and effective," he explained. Pfizer has already manufactured hundreds of thousands of doses of the vaccine candidate, including at a plant in Belgium, Bourla said. The US drugmaker is in the race to come up with a vaccine with its partner, Germany's BioNTech. Across the world, governments are hoping to announce a vaccine as soon as possible and roll out treatments for the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 860,000 people and infected over 26 million. But the sense of urgency has raised fears that companies and regulators might rush though testing meant to ensure that vaccines or treatments can be used safely and will actually be effective against the disease.

Americans can get COVID-19 vaccine before year-end, says Pfizer CEO

Pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca on Tuesday said that it had to &nbsp;"voluntarily paused" a randomized clinical trial of its coronavirus vaccine. The company called it a routine action after a volunteer developed an unexplained illness.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/china-handled-covid-19-openly-and-transparently-xi-jinping-325898" hreflang="en">China handled COVID-19 openly and transparently: Xi Jinping</a>

AstraZeneca is developing the drug alongside the University of Oxford and is considered the frontrunner in the global race for a vaccine against coronavirus.&nbsp;

"As part of the ongoing randomized, controlled global trials of the Oxford coronavirus vaccine, our standard review process was triggered and we voluntarily paused vaccination to allow review of safety data by an independent committee," a spokesperson said.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russia-releases-first-batch-of-covid-19-vaccine-sputnik-v-into-public-325883" hreflang="en">Russia releases first batch of Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V into public</a>

"This is a routine action which has to happen whenever there is a potentially unexplained illness in one of the trials, while it is investigated, ensuring we maintain the integrity of the trials."

The company spokesperson also added that in large trials, illnesses will sometimes happen by chance but must be reviewed independently.

"We are working to expedite the review of the single event to minimise any potential impact on the trial timeline," the spokesperson said.

The nature and severity of illness or where the patient was not clear immediately.&nbsp;

Pauses during clinical trials are common. But, this is thought to be the first time it has happened for a Covid-19 vaccine trial.

AstraZeneca is one of nine companies currently in late-stage Phase 3 trials for their vaccine candidates.

Pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca on Tuesday said that it had to "voluntarily paused" a randomized clinical trial of its coronavirus vaccine. The company called it a routine action after a volunteer developed an unexplained illness.

Pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca on Tuesday said that it had to "voluntarily paused" a randomized clinical trial of its coronavirus vaccine. The company called it a routine action after a volunteer developed an unexplained illness. Also read: China handled COVID-19 openly and transparently: Xi Jinping AstraZeneca is developing the drug alongside the University of Oxford and is considered the frontrunner in the global race for a vaccine against coronavirus. "As part of the ongoing randomized, controlled global trials of the Oxford coronavirus vaccine, our standard review process was triggered and we voluntarily paused vaccination to allow review of safety data by an independent committee," a spokesperson said. Also read: Russia releases first batch of Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V into public "This is a routine action which has to happen whenever there is a potentially unexplained illness in one of the trials, while it is investigated, ensuring we maintain the integrity of the trials." The company spokesperson also added that in large trials, illnesses will sometimes happen by chance but must be reviewed independently. "We are working to expedite the review of the single event to minimise any potential impact on the trial timeline," the spokesperson said. The nature and severity of illness or where the patient was not clear immediately. Pauses during clinical trials are common. But, this is thought to be the first time it has happened for a Covid-19 vaccine trial. AstraZeneca is one of nine companies currently in late-stage Phase 3 trials for their vaccine candidates.

AstraZeneca 'voluntarily pauses' clinical trials for Oxford's COVID-19 vaccine after unexplained illness

Around 50,000 people, across a number of countries, are participating in phase 3 clinical trials of a COVID vaccine developed by the China National Biotec Group (CNBG), the company said on Saturday in a press release.

"The third phase of clinical trials of the inactivated CNBG vaccine against COVID-19 is significantly accelerating, and clinical trials are already underway in several countries, including Bahrain, UAE, Morocco, Peru, Argentina, with about 50,000 people participating," the CNGB said.

Media reported in July that phase 3 trial of CNBG's vaccine will also be held in Uzbekistan, and Pakistan has expressed interest in conducting clinical trials as well.

Around 50,000 people, across a number of countries, are participating in phase 3 clinical trials of a COVID vaccine developed by the China National Biotec Group (CNBG), the company said on Saturday in a press release.

Around 50,000 people, across a number of countries, are participating in phase 3 clinical trials of a COVID vaccine developed by the China National Biotec Group (CNBG), the company said on Saturday in a press release. "The third phase of clinical trials of the inactivated CNBG vaccine against COVID-19 is significantly accelerating, and clinical trials are already underway in several countries, including Bahrain, UAE, Morocco, Peru, Argentina, with about 50,000 people participating," the CNGB said. Media reported in July that phase 3 trial of CNBG's vaccine will also be held in Uzbekistan, and Pakistan has expressed interest in conducting clinical trials as well.

50,000 people globally part of phase 3 trial of Chinese covid-19 vaccine 

Democrat's vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris on Saturday said that if a vaccine for COVID-19 &nbsp;is available before November's election, she would not take President Trump's word on its safety and efficacy.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/multiple-vessels-during-pro-trump-boat-parade-in-texas-sink-no-injuries-reported-325470" hreflang="en">Multiple vessels during pro-Trump boat parade in Texas sink</a>

Trump administration has been under scrutiny over its handling of the virus which has sparked fears of his government rushing the vaccine research to release it before the elections.&nbsp;

"I would not trust Donald Trump and it would have to be a credible source of information that talks about the efficacy and the reliability of (a vaccine)," Harris told CNN.

"I will not take his word for it."

The head of the US Food and Drug Administration recently claimed that a COVID-19 vaccine would be rolled out in the US before completing its trials.

In an interview with The Financial Times on Sunday, Stephen Hahn, the commissioner of FDA said that he was ready to allow “emergency use” for a coronavirus vaccine, even before stage 3 of the human trials come to a close.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/expect-drive-thrus-stadiums-to-be-converted-to-in-person-polling-places-for-us-election-325456">Expect stadiums to be converted to in-person polling places for US election</a>

Hahn added that the “benefit outweighs the risk in a public health emergency”, as the US nears 6 million cases.

Many analysts believe that Trump wants to fast track a vaccine before the upcoming November elections to sway the vote in his favour. Medical professionals are also wary of the risks posed by using an untested vaccine.

Currently, Trump’s Operation Warp Speed is underway, which a public-private partnership to develop a coronavirus vaccine.

However, on Monday, The White House said that "no one is pressuring the FDA to do anything" after reports said there is increasing pressure on the agency to pass the coronavirus vaccine ahead of the US election to be held on November 3.

"The priority here is saving lives," White House spokesperson Kayleigh McEnany said.

Meanwhile drugmaker Pfizer said it should know by the end of October whether the coronavirus vaccine it is developing with BioNTech is safe and effective. The drugmaker said that it will seek approval immediately if trial results show positive results.

Pfizer and Moderna had begun final phase-3 clinical trials on July 27 with the US Food and Drug Administration(FDA) likely to give emergency use approval for critically ill patients to allow an early release to the public.

US infections diseases expert Anthony Fauci said that initial results could come in "November or December."

Democrat's vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris on Saturday said that if a vaccine for COVID-19 is available before November's election, she would not take President Trump's word on its safety and efficacy.

Democrat's vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris on Saturday said that if a vaccine for COVID-19 is available before November's election, she would not take President Trump's word on its safety and efficacy. Also read: Multiple vessels during pro-Trump boat parade in Texas sink Trump administration has been under scrutiny over its handling of the virus which has sparked fears of his government rushing the vaccine research to release it before the elections. "I would not trust Donald Trump and it would have to be a credible source of information that talks about the efficacy and the reliability of (a vaccine)," Harris told CNN. "I will not take his word for it." The head of the US Food and Drug Administration recently claimed that a COVID-19 vaccine would be rolled out in the US before completing its trials. In an interview with The Financial Times on Sunday, Stephen Hahn, the commissioner of FDA said that he was ready to allow “emergency use” for a coronavirus vaccine, even before stage 3 of the human trials come to a close. Also read: Expect stadiums to be converted to in-person polling places for US election Hahn added that the “benefit outweighs the risk in a public health emergency”, as the US nears 6 million cases. Many analysts believe that Trump wants to fast track a vaccine before the upcoming November elections to sway the vote in his favour. Medical professionals are also wary of the risks posed by using an untested vaccine. Currently, Trump’s Operation Warp Speed is underway, which a public-private partnership to develop a coronavirus vaccine. However, on Monday, The White House said that "no one is pressuring the FDA to do anything" after reports said there is increasing pressure on the agency to pass the coronavirus vaccine ahead of the US election to be held on November 3. "The priority here is saving lives," White House spokesperson Kayleigh McEnany said. Meanwhile drugmaker Pfizer said it should know by the end of October whether the coronavirus vaccine it is developing with BioNTech is safe and effective. The drugmaker said that it will seek approval immediately if trial results show positive results. Pfizer and Moderna had begun final phase-3 clinical trials on July 27 with the US Food and Drug Administration(FDA) likely to give emergency use approval for critically ill patients to allow an early release to the public. US infections diseases expert Anthony Fauci said that initial results could come in "November or December."

'Will not trust him': Kamala Harris on Donald Trump's pre-election vaccine

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