FDA Approves Two COVID-19 Vaccines

An Influenza vaccine liquid and the injections

At last, the FDA has approved both the Pfizer and the BioNTech vaccines.  They are no longer approved only for experimental use which will shoot down one of the last excuses that anti-vaxers have been using as an excuse not to get vaccinated.  This is where the rubber meets the road and those not getting vaccinated are going to have to try and come up with another excuse for doing what the majority of Americans have done—get vaccinated against the coronavirus.  Shortly after the approval, the Pentagon announced that it would require all active-duty military to be vaccinated (only 64% now are) and President Biden put the pressure on private companies to do the same.  “Today I’m calling on more companies in the private sector to step up with vaccine requirements that will reach millions to do that,” he said.  Johnson & Johnson and Moderna are expected to submit paperwork to get full approval by the end of the year.  This is definitely great news as hospitalizations from COVID-19 are surging as the Delta variant continues to spread.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/fda-approves-pfizer-biontech-covid-19-vaccine-for-people-16-and-older-11629726322?mod=djemwhatsnews

Dr. Fauci Says COVID-19 Vaccines Might Be Fully Approved By Month End

Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Sunday that he believes that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) could give full approval for COVID-19 vaccines by the end of the month.  This could spur some non-vaccine people more amenable to getting vaccinated, slowing down the rapidly growing rate of infection.    Fauci also warned in his “Meet the Press” interview that although the delta variant is troublesome, a new variant may emerge which would make the pandemic even more problematic and longer lived.  It could also cause more businesses to decide to require employees to get vaccinated or find another job. There are now more than 44K Americans in the hospital with COVID-19, up 30% from just a week ago, according to Johns Hopkins University.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/08/08/us-infections-100-k-cdc-florida-joe-biden/5524511001/