Covid vaccine: AstraZeneca updates US vaccine efficacy results

AstraZeneca has updated the efficacy result of its coronavirus vaccine trial in the US, after health officials insisted they wanted to include the latest information. The Anglo-Swedish firm has now adjusted the efficacy rate of its vaccine from 79% to 76%. Further data from the US trial showed efficacy among the over 65s rose from 80% to 85%. AstraZeneca said it now looked forward to getting US regulatory approval. The company said the trial results confirm the vaccine “is highly effective in adults” and it remains 100% effective at preventing severe cases of the disease. The US trials of the AstraZeneca jab had involved more than 32,000 volunteers, mostly in America, but also in Chile and Peru. In the results announced on Monday, the company said the vaccine was found to be 79% effective. But the next day, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said it had been informed by data and safety officials monitoring the trial that information may have been used that provided an “incomplete view of the efficacy data”. Dr Anthony Fauci, the White House’s Chief Medical Advisor, then warned reporters the firm would “likely come out with a modified statement”.(BBC)…[+]