1. List the 4 companies (3 American and 1 British) that are in the final phase of study on coronavirus vaccines.

2. After a company has concluded trials and determined a vaccine is ready, what needs to happen for it to be made available to the public?

3. a) How many participants have enrolled in Moderna’s trial?
b) Moderna began its trial on July 27. Why is it unlikely that the company will have solid data before November?

4. a) How many and from what groups is Pfizer using in its Phase 3 study?
b) Why did Pfizer increase the number of participants in its trial?

5. Why is AstraZeneca’s trial in the U.S. on hold despite having resumed in other countries?

6. a) How many participants are taking part in the Johnson & Johnson trial?
b) What is different about the J&J vaccine?

7. Under the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed, President Trump asked the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Defense (DoD) to enter into an agreement with Moderna to manufacture and deliver 100 million doses of the company's COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The federal government will then own these vaccine doses.

The Trump administration has also entered an agreement wtih Sanofi and GlaxoSmithKline up to $2.1 billion to develop and deliver 100 million doses of their potential coronavirus vaccine.

The Trump administration has invested more than $10 billion in developing eight different COVID-19 vaccines, with much of that money pre-purchasing hundreds of millions of doses so they will be ready for distribution if an FDA approval comes through.

What do you think of the idea of this pre-emptive action? — Buying several companies’ vaccines in the hope/expectation that one will be determined by the FDA to be effective and safe, therefore being ready to distribute much more quickly, as opposed to waiting for a vaccine that has been approved, then ordering and waiting for it to be produced? Explain your answer.

8. Would you get a vaccine as soon as it is made available? Why or why not? — Ask several friends and family members the same question.