Pfizer Covid-19 Vaccine Shown To Be 95% Effective, and Also Safe

Today, Nov. 18, Pfizer released data from its ongoing Phase 3 trial that indicates that the vaccine is 95% effective, based on an accumulation of 170 cases of Covid-19 among participants in the trial. The Phase 3 testing includes 43,500 participants in six countries, half getting the vaccine and half getting a placebo (a fake shot without the vaccine). Of the 170 cases of Covid-19 so far in the total trial, 162 were in the placebo group, and only 8 were in the vaccinated group. Pfizer noted that the efficacy of the vaccine was “consistent across age, gender, race, and ethnicity demographics.” The efficacy for people over age 65 was 94%. In addition, there were no significant adverse effects of the vaccine reported, indicating an acceptable level of safety. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said on Nov. 17 that the company was preparing to request an Emergency Use Authorization within days from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The vaccine elicits a response from both of the two major limbs of the immune system, the antibodies and the T-cells. The vaccine uses an advanced technology, messenger RNA, which is a lab-produced gene for the virus spike protein. There is no virus in the vaccine.