The coronavirus vaccine being developed by Pfizer
will not be ready before the November 3 election
, as promised by President Donald Trump.
As reported this Friday by the CEO of the company, Albert Bourla, Pfizer will apply to obtain emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, in English)
no earlier than the third week of November
.
Bourla said in a statement that although the pharmaceutical company will know by the end of October if the vaccine works, they will need additional time to collect safety and manufacturing data, which will extend the schedule at least until the last weeks of November.
[Lack of evidence casts doubt on the use of the coronavirus vaccine in children during the first months]
The announcement marks a departure from previous statements provided by Pfizer, which emphasized that the vaccine could be ready in October, before the election.
That fulfilled the wish of Trump, who repeatedly claimed that a vaccine to curb COVID-19 would be approved for use by November 3.
[Fact check: Trump says the COVID-19 vaccine will be ready in October. But this is unlikely]
Emergency authorization is a power that the FDA has to approve the use of a drug in a more agile and rapid resolution process, avoiding weeks or months of analysis of the studies presented by a pharmaceutical company.
The FDA will tighten the requirements for emergency approval of a COVID-19 vaccine, in an attempt to show transparency and build public trust, according to The Washington Post.
To get to request that authorization, Pfizer still has to wait for the results of its vaccine to be positive.
Pfizer plans to test its COVID-19 vaccine in 12-year-olds
Oct. 14, 202000: 27
Other pharmaceutical companies seeking the coronavirus vaccine have faced difficulties.
At the beginning of September, the AstraZeneca laboratory suspended its tests in volunteers of the vaccine that it develops together with the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, after the appearance of "a potentially inexplicable disease" in one of the volunteers.
And this week, Johnson & Johnson announced that it will suspend clinical trials of its vaccine due to adverse reactions in volunteers who received the doses.
The pharmacy did not say what the disease is that affects them.
Infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci said that the interruption of the trials is an "unfortunate" fact, although he clarified that it is something that can happen frequently in view of the precautions for the safety of the patients.