Starting this week, researchers will begin testing one of the experimental COVID-19 vaccines on children, marking the first trial in the country to do so.
It’s one of several big developments in the race to approve a vaccine.
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So far, more than 600 Central Floridians have walked into a DeLand lab, willing to test the Moderna vaccine.
Moderna and Pfizer are in the final phases of testing their vaccines. For Pfizer, that includes testing children 12 and over.
On Tuesday, Johnson & Johnson paused its study after one person got “an unexplained illness.” And it’s been over a month since AstraZeneca’s trial had been put on hold in the U.S. after two British participants experienced neurological issues.
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When a vaccine is approved and available by, at the earliest, the end of the year, companies cannot be held liable for any unexpected complications.
“Now, if there are expected complications, and the company hid that information, like they knew about something that it would happen, and they don’t tell people about it, you can still sue for that,” said Dr. Steven Goldstein of the Houston Healthcare Initiative.
A recent Gallup Poll found people are split right down the middle when asked if they’d take a vaccine, down from the 66% of people who were willing to take it three months ago.
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