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- Dr Anthony Fauci urged Americans to get vaccinated against COVID-19, but not to choose which brand they receive.
- An FDA advisory committee is expected to vote on Johnson & Johnson’s green lighting of a coronavirus vaccine on Friday.
- “People should get vaccinated… When a vaccine becomes available, take it,” Fauci told NBC News.
- Visit Insider’s Business section for more stories.
U.S. infectious disease specialist Dr Anthony Fauci urged Americans to get vaccinated against the coronavirus and not choose the brand they receive.
New data from the Food and Drug Administration has shown that the single-dose coronavirus vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson is safe and effective, which could dramatically speed up the timing of the vaccine’s distribution in the United States.
An advisory committee is set to vote on the green light of the J&J vaccine for distribution on Friday, allowing it to join Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines in the United States. If the vaccine is approved, the United States could complete vaccination of priority groups by March, Insider’s Aria Bendix reported.
In an interview with NBC’s “TODAY”, Fauci expressed optimism about a possible third vaccine being given to Americans.
“Having two is good; having three is absolutely better,” Fauci said during the “TODAY” segment. “It’s better because there is more choice. It’s better because it increases the supply of vaccines.”
The J&J vaccine is only a single dose, compared to the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which are typically given three to four weeks apart. Federal data shows that the latest vaccine was 66% effective in preventing severe cases of COVID-19, while the Moderna vaccine and Pfizer vaccine were 94% and 95% effective, respectively.
However, “it’s almost as effective at preventing hospitalizations and deaths,” Insider’s Hilary Brueck reported.
The infectious disease expert urged Americans to get the vaccine as soon as it is available to them, regardless of brand.
“It’s a race between the virus and vaccinating people,” Fauci said. “The longer a person waits to be vaccinated, the better the chance that the virus will get a variant or mutation.”
“So the sooner we put the vaccine in the arms of individuals, whatever vaccine it is, once it’s been obtained by the FDA, if it’s available to you, get it,” Fauci said.
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