FDA Approves Moderna Vaccine

Approval of Moderna's vaccine late Friday under an Emergency Use Authorization by the FDA ensures millions more doses are now en route to distribution centers across the nation.

Planes and trucks filled with Moderna's COVID immunization began journeys to distribution centers in every state Sunday morning. Healthcare supply chain giant McKesson is handling the distribution for Moderna from its centers in Kentucky and Mississippi. Pfizer mostly is utilizing the U.S. Government, predominately through the military, for dissemination. McKesson will utilize FedEx and UPS for delivery of its vaccine. Many of the Moderna shipments are being accompanied by local and state police.

As has been widely reported, Moderna's vaccine does not require storage at super cold temperatures as does Pfizer/BioNTech, both of which employ messenger RNA (mRNA) platform technology to trigger the human immune system to make antibodies to the coronavirus.

The United States is the first nation to approve Moderna's vaccine. Like Pfizer's vaccine, Moderna's has been demonstrated by to be at least 95% effective at preventing symptoms of COVID. Moderna's data, published in advance of an independent advisory panel's approval recommendation Thursday, strongly demonstrated the vaccine may substantively reduce the ability of the coronavirus' spread from one human to another, though additional data will be required. And what is not yet known with either vaccine is the length of time immunization is provided against the coronavirus. It could be just several months, but it also might provide protection for a year or longer.

Around six million of Moderna's doses are in the process of being shipped to some 3,800 locations throughout the country. Another 14 million doses - enough to immunize 10 million citizens -- Moderna says will have been distributed by the end of year.