COVID-19 vaccine development should be distanced from politics, UNC specialist says
The research behind the novel coronavirus vaccines in development is sound, said Dr. David Wohl, but he worries about vaccines being used as campaign fodder.
“It’s one of the sorrier stories of this pandemic,” said Wohl, a professor of medicine and infectious disease specialist at the UNC School of Medicine.
“I think the researchers and the scientists are doing a fantastic job,” he said Wednesday in a UNC Health media briefing held via Zoom.
“We are doing this extremely rigorously,” Wohl said. “The studies are well-designed. The issue is people interpreting the data too soon.”
President Donald Trump repeatedly has said that a vaccine will be ready before Election Day. But the White House approved FDA guidelines this week that makes it unlikely that a vaccine will be approved within the month, The New York Times reported.
Axios-Ipsos polls this summer have shown Americans’ declining willingness to get a new coronavirus vaccine. The Pew Research Center reported in September that people’s willingness to get a vaccine — if one were immediately available — had dropped. The poll showed concerns about side effects, effectiveness and safety.
UNC is taking part in Phase 3 of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine trial, The News & Observer reported. UNC has enrolled 150 people in the trial as of Wednesday, Wohl said. The goal is to have 200 people enrolled in the trial at UNC, he said.
Moderna aims to have 30,000 people enrolled in the trial at sites across the country.
Wohl said he plans to enroll in the study when Duke starts accepting participants.
“I will roll up my sleeve and get vaccinated,” Wohl said. “That’s the only way I can try to indicate physically, if you will, not just with my words but with my feet, that I think this is important for us to do.”
Taking COVID-19 seriously
COVID-19 trends remain a concern, Wohl said.
“We have to take seriously this virus,” he said. “It is expanding in many parts of the country, not receding.”
Trump missed an opportunity to talk about the seriousness of COVID-19 when he was hospitalized with the coronavirus, and several aides and close associates also have been infected with the virus, Wohl said
“There is a conversation that could be had about the seriousness of this infection and about the measures that could be taken to prevent it,” he said. “Unfortunately, that opportunity was missed. “
Tuesday, Gov. Roy Cooper expressed similar sentiments at a news conference, saying the White House’s messaging is “frustrating.”
“That’s just the wrong signal to be sending,” Cooper said. “I’m so looking forward to when we can have public health issues taken out of the context of this election. We all need to come together as a state and country to get rid of this virus.”
As of Wednesday, 222,969 people in North Carolina have been diagnosed with the coronavirus since March, when the pandemic began. There have been 3,693 COVID-19-related deaths, N.C. Department of Health and Human Services reported.