Uncontrolled Spread: Why COVID-19 Crushed Us and How We Can Defeat the Next Pandemic

by Scott Gottlieb

Pfizer began evaluating the vaccine in a pivotal trial on July 27, with the first volunteers receiving shots at the University of Rochester. Moderna’s vaccine also entered its phase three study the same day. About three months later, on Sunday, November 8, I got an email around 2 p.m. “Board Call at 6 tonight” the subject line read, and the email went on to say, “Albert has confidential news to share regarding the vaccine,” referring to Pfizer’s CEO Dr. Albert Bourla. I was apprehensive. Based on the earlier data, we felt reasonably confident that the vaccine would work. However, you never know until the trial is done and you’ve seen the data. And even if the vaccine was proven to be safe and effective, we didn’t have a clear sense of how beneficial it would be, just some hints from the earlier trials. Would the vaccine clear the FDA’s hurdle for approval and prove to be more than 50 percent effective at preventing COVID’s symptoms? Sensing the nervousness on the call, Bourla broke the tension right away. “I have news on the vaccine,” he began, “and it’s good.”