United States federal health officials said Monday they are concerned about the trial data of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, saying the data may have included “outdated information,” according to The Associated Press.
- This would mean the data offers an incomplete look at how effective the vaccine actually is for people.
Context
On Monday, AstraZeneca released new trial data showing its COVID-19 vaccine was 100% effective in stopping severe illness and hospitalization from COVID-19, as I wrote about for the Deseret News.
- The U.S. trial also showed 79% efficacy in stopping symptomatic disease, a similar efficacy to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which is 72% effective against symptomatic cases in the U.S., per The New York Times.
What U.S. officials said
Hours after the data came out, the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said its data and safety monitoring board “expressed concern that AstraZeneca may have included outdated information from that trial, which may have provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data.”
- “We urge the company to work with the DSMB to review the efficacy data and ensure the most accurate, up-to-date efficacy data be made public as quickly as possible,” the statement added.
Did AstraZeneca respond?
Yes. Per The Associated Press, AstraZeneca said the data released Monday included cases up until Feb. 17 — but it was still analyzing any cases that came after the study’s end.
- The company said any new data remained consistent with the older data. But the vaccine developer said it would offer an update by Wednesday or Thursday.
What does this mean?
The AstraZeneca vaccine is not approved for the US right now. So it’s unclear how this will impact the vaccine rollout here.