According to Fox News, Johnson & Johnson on Friday said its single-shot coronavirus vaccine was 72% effective in preventing moderate-to-severe COVID-19 in the U.S, but fell to 66% in a larger trial conducted worldwide. The results stem from a Phase 3 ENSEMBLE clinical trial, which involved 43,783 participants.
Top officials with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) weighed in on the results Friday. One voiced disappointment in the vaccine’s efficacy compared to previously authorized shots developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, which are about 95% effective against COVID-19.
Dr. Jay Butler, the CDC’s deputy director of infectious diseases, said that while the 66% efficacy is “disappointing compared” to the mRNA vaccines, the agency would “be celebrating the seasonal influenza vaccine with a 60% efficacy.”
Disappointing results to say the least, and for a virus with a survival rate of now 99.6%, it’s hard to imagine that many people will be lining up to get the Johnson & Johnson covid-19 vaccine.
