Don't expect first COVID-19 vaccinations until early 2021 - WHO's Ryan

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Don't expect first COVID-19 vaccinations until early 2021 - WHO's Ryan

By Stephanie Nebehay and John Miller

 

FILE PHOTO: Mike Ryan, Executive Director of the World Health Organisation (WHO) attends a news conference on the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland May 3, 2019. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo

 

GENEVA/ZURICH (Reuters) - Researchers are making "good progress" in developing vaccines against COVID-19, with a handful in late-stage trials, but their first use cannot be expected until early 2021, a World Health Organization (WHO) expert said on Wednesday.

 

WHO is working to ensure fair vaccine distribution, but in the meantime it is key to suppress the virus's spread, said Mike Ryan, head of WHO's emergencies programme, as daily new cases around the globe are at near-record levels.

 

"We're making good progress," Ryan said, noting that several vaccines were now in phase 3 trials and none had failed, so far, in terms of safety or ability to generate an immune response.

 

"Realistically it is going to be the first part of next year before we start seeing people getting vaccinated," he told a public event on social media.

WHO was working to expand access to potential vaccines and to help scale-up production capacity, Ryan said.

 

"And we need to be fair about this, because this is a global good. Vaccines for this pandemic are not for the wealthy, they are not for the poor, they are for everybody," he said.

 

The U.S. government will pay $1.95 billion to buy 100 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer Inc <PFE.N> and German biotech BioNTech <22UAy.F> if it proves safe and effective, the companies said.

 

Ryan also cautioned schools to be careful about re-opening until community transmission of COVID-19 is under control. Debate in the United States over restarting education has intensified, even as the pandemic flares up in dozens of states.

 

"We have to do everything possible to bring our children back to school, and the most effective thing we can do is to stop the disease in our community," he said. "Because if you control the disease in the community, you can open the schools."

 

(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva and John Miller in Zurich; editing by Alexandra Hudson)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-07-23

 

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[Baerboxer]

I don't think WHO speak on behalf of countries, research labs, pharmaceuticals companies or industry.

 

Just edge their bets with vague comments or stating the obvious.

 

Proving to be about as useful as the rest of the UN and it's offshoots.

[ukrules]

So what, that's just a few months away.

 

The ongoing phase 3 tests can include many many people. The vaccine will be widely available as soon as it's made but it will continue to be part of the phase 3 trial for a while.

 

They're attempting to test it on as many people as possible while COVID is still here because there's a very serious risk that it could disappear.

 

This is a big leap in terms of technology and it needs to be proven while the threat is still present.

[welovesundaysatspace]

 

31 minutes ago, ukrules said:

 

They're attempting to test it on as many people as possible while COVID is still here because there's a very serious risk that it could disappear.

I hope they also find a vaccine for HIV once it’s still here. After all, it could just magically disappear. Maybe if we stopped testing for it that would solve it. 

 

[spiekerjozef]

Probably they come up with a tiger balm tablet and then they find out it doesn't work.

Wouldn't it be much wiser to actually work on it together as one?

Now you got a about 25 pharmaceutical companies competing and NOT sharing what works or doesn't work, all for that bloody money.

No wonder it takes so long.

[Laughing Gravy]

Thailand will make one soon before everyone. It will be a mixture of Som Tam and Thai herbs. Honest.

[galenflagler]

33 minutes ago, Laughing Gravy said:

Thailand will make one soon before everyone. It will be a mixture of Som Tam and Thai herbs. Honest.

Yes those backward Thais somehow managed to suppress the spread of Covid whilst the British failed miserably at it. If every nation was performing as well as Thailand the need for the vaccine would be a lot less urgent.

[Laughing Gravy]

28 minutes ago, galenflagler said:

Yes those backward Thais somehow managed to suppress the spread of Covid whilst the British failed miserably at it

That is the funniest thing I have heard this month. You need to test people before you get the stats right. Yes the Brits didn't do a great job. But Thailand allowed all the Chinese in knowing that the virus was a pandemic and turned a blind eye. I know.

 

I guess you are Thai.

 

BTW you called Thais backward not me.

Edited July 23, 2020 by Laughing Gravy

[galenflagler]

10 hours ago, Laughing Gravy said:

That is the funniest thing I have heard this month. You need to test people before you get the stats right. Yes the Brits didn't do a great job. But Thailand allowed all the Chinese in knowing that the virus was a pandemic and turned a blind eye. I know.

 

I guess you are Thai.

 

BTW you called Thais backward not me.

Please. If Thailand were experiencing the consequences of an uncontrolled pandemic it's hospitals would be full to overflowing. Not happening.

Just because you didn't use the word "backward" you're claiming that you didn't portray Thais as such??. You claimed that their vaccine efforts amounted to a concoction of Som Tam and Thaiherbs. Would such an attempt be characterized as forward thinking scientific approach? Or even a current scientific approach. Please. Your characterization reeked of condescension. 

[Laughing Gravy]

49 minutes ago, galenflagler said:

Please. If Thailand were experiencing the consequences of an uncontrolled pandemic it's hospitals would be full to overflowing. Not happening.

Just because you didn't use the word "backward" you're claiming that you didn't portray Thais as such??. You claimed that their vaccine efforts amounted to a concoction of Som Tam and Thaiherbs. Would such an attempt be characterized as forward thinking scientific approach? Or even a current scientific approach. Please. Your characterization reeked of condescension. 

Once again you are putting words down that I did not say and making your own assumptions. I actually don't live in Thailand at the moment but did for 17 years and I still call it home. I was there at Christmas from China where I work.I was sick as a dog and went the hospital. you have flu.

 

Actually it turned out I had Covid19. Thailand did not test and when the world was opening up to the pandemic, what did the Thai government do. They actually welcomed more Chinese tourists in. 

 

So save your pleases and your pitiful justification. I am claiming that the Thai authorities are complacent, falsify the truth and often come up with weird treatments for all sorts of things. I am still hurting from the doctors claims of skipping 1000 times a day makes you taller and slapping the breasts consistently makes them bigger. I could go on and Som tam has been mentioned as a cure many times. Do your research or are you going to try and defend the indefendable.

 

So are you Thai? You didn't reply

[stevenl]

1 hour ago, galenflagler said:

Please. If Thailand were experiencing the consequences of an uncontrolled pandemic it's hospitals would be full to overflowing. Not happening.

Just because you didn't use the word "backward" you're claiming that you didn't portray Thais as such??. You claimed that their vaccine efforts amounted to a concoction of Som Tam and Thaiherbs. Would such an attempt be characterized as forward thinking scientific approach? Or even a current scientific approach. Please. Your characterization reeked of condescension. 

Correction: his characterisation didn't reek of condescension, it was condescending.