Vaccine for COVID-19

This week the WHO issued a Public Statement about the large international team of scientists, physicians, funders and manufacturers that are collaborating to help speed up the availability of a vaccine against COVID-19.

The WHO is aiming to have a vaccine that has low cost, single dose administration without a needle (oral, nasal, etc), 70% effectiveness in two weeks, minimal side effects, and immunity that lasts at least one year. It is hoped that the vaccine will be widely available in 12 -18 months.

There are 78 confirmed active projects developing a vaccine –some are at exploratory or pre-clinical stages and some have already moved into clinical trials. That means that a small number of humans have received an experimental vaccine and researchers will follow them to test for effectiveness, side effects, and length of immunity.

There are also a number of small sero-surveys taking place around the world to assess “natural immunity” of people who have recovered from COVID-19. The preliminary data shows that only 14% of people are immune to another exposure of SARS CoV-2. “Herd immunity” requires 60-70% of the population to be immune. Therefore, a vaccine is the world’s best protection against COVID-19.