Makers of the leading coronavirus vaccine candidates disclosed detailed information about their pivotal late-stage clinical trials and how they plan to gauge their shots’ safety and effectiveness.
The moves by first Moderna Inc., and then later from Pfizer Inc. and its partner BioNTech SE, follow increasing worry that the effort to develop a COVID-19 vaccine is becoming politicized, and that an inoculation could be rushed to market before it is proven safe and effective.
Moderna released its plan ahead of an early Thursday morning investor meeting. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company decided to share its full trial design to create public confidence that it’s doing everything it can to ensure a vaccine works and won’t cause harm, said Chief Executive Officer Stephane Bancel. The move resulted in a snowball of information that’s not often available to the general public and broader science community.