Drug companies work jointly to boost vaccine confidence

(AP) — Top officials of two firms developing COVID-19 vaccines say pharmaceutical companies are working together to see how much information they can release to the public about their testing regimes as drugmakers and public health officials try to boost confidence that any vaccine approved by regulators will be safe to use.

AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot and Paul Stoffels, chief scientific officer of Johnson & Johnson, said Thursday during a panel discussion sponsored by the World Economic Forum that they recognize the coronavirus emergency demands increased transparency from vaccine developers to ensure the public has faith in the end product. But they stressed that there are limits to this transparency because they must protect patient confidentiality.

A huge study of a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine is getting underway as top U.S. health officials seek to assure a skeptical public they can trust any shots the government ultimately approves.

President Donald Trump is pushing for a fast decision. But Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration’s chief pledged to a Senate committee that the decision will be based on science, not politics. Hopes are high that answers about at least one of several candidates could come by year’s end.

The one-dose contender from Johnson & Johnson will be tested in 60,000 people in the U.S. and several other countries.