In a new briefing document, the US Food and Drug Administration supports the authorization of Moderna's SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, NPR reports.
Last month, Moderna announced that its vaccine appeared to have an efficacy of 94.5 percent in its late-stage clinical trial of more than 30,000 people and that it would be seeking an Emergency Use Authorization from the FDA.
In the new briefing document, which has been released ahead of an advisory panel meeting later this week, the agency reports Moderna's vaccine has an efficacy of 94 percent and a favorable safety profile. NPR notes that the vaccine appears to be less effective among older individuals: it has an effectiveness of 86 percent for individuals 65 and older, as compared to 96 percent for individuals over the age of 18, but younger than 65 years old.
The New York Times adds that the advisory panel is expected to vote to recommend authorization following its Thursday meeting and that the vaccine could be authorized as early as Friday. Nearly 6 millions doses could then be shipped, the Washington Post reports.
The FDA authorized Pfizer and BioNTech's SARS-CoV-2 vaccine last Friday and vaccinations began Monday.