There is a lot of concern surrounding the new COVID-19 vaccine. Yet, early research suggests that these vaccines might be the most effective vaccines in history.
According to a New York Times report, the two vaccines that are being used across the country, the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, are extremely effective.
"The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines — the only two approved in the U.S. — are among the best vaccines ever created, with effectiveness rates of about 95 percent after two doses. That’s on par with the vaccines for chickenpox and measles. And a vaccine doesn’t even need to be so effective to reduce cases sharply and crush a pandemic."
Although researchers are still learning about the vaccine, one doctor described the public perception of the vaccine—even the positive reviews—as "underselling."
"If anything, the 95 percent number understates the effectiveness, because it counts anyone who came down with a mild case of Covid-19 as a failure," the Times explained. "But turning Covid into a typical flu — as the vaccines evidently did for most of the remaining 5 percent — is actually a success. Of the 32,000 people who received the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine in a research trial, do you want to guess how many contracted a severe Covid case? One."
Dr. Paul Offit, who is the director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, called the vaccines "ridiculously encouraging" and said that they are "essentially 100 percent effective against serious disease," per the NYT.
