As the number of Covid-19 cases rise each day, an effective vaccine gets closer to being finished. There have been many companies working on vaccines since the outbreak of the virus last year. 

As of Nov. 20, Pfiezer and BioNTech have concluded Phase 3 of their clinical trials and are seeking emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 

Pfiezer’s trials included 44,000 people and found that the vaccines caused no major health issues and were 95% effective in protecting people from the virus. 

The FDA’s vaccine advisory committee is set to meet on Dec. 10 to make a decision on the authorization of the vaccine. This would potentially allow the vaccines to be distributed to frontline medical workers and high-risk populations by mid December. 

It is still expected to take about six to nine months for any vaccine to be administered to the entire population.

The process to create a vaccine that is available to the public is extensive and often takes multiple years, however, with the desperate need for a coronavirus vaccine across the globe, the process has been expedited. 

Vaccines begin with research and development, which began almost immediately after the outbreak. Then there is a preclinical step where testing is done on animals for further research before it moves on to be tested on humans. 

There are three phases of human testing that must be completed and pass measures of efficacy and safety before it can be approved by the FDA. Once approved and distributed, the FDA will continue to monitor the vaccine and its effectiveness. 

There has been pressure on the FDA to finish a vaccine from the U.S. government and the Trump Administration.

After receiving treatment for coronavirus in early October, President Trump has made several claims about the timeline and distribution of the potential vaccines, often contradicting statements from the FDA. 

However, as the vaccine gets closer to being finished, things have seemed to calm down between Trump, the FDA and the companies creating the vaccines. 

“Three other vaccines are also in the final stages of trial,” said President Trump during an update on Operation Warp Speed on Nov. 13. “They’ll arrive within a few weeks, and they will also be mass produced, and the delivery will be very rapid. We’re ready to go.”

Since a vaccine will still not be available to everyone before well into 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is still urging people to take precautions this holiday season in an effort to keep the number of cases from spiking. 

With a coronavirus vaccine on the horizon, many people are beginning to see hope of life without Covid-19 again.