More than 200 dentists and dental students in Oregon have completed the training course offered by the Oregon Health & Science University’s School of Dentistry, with 60 others expected to finish by the end of December.
The institution seeks volunteers for a promising vaccine developed by Oxford University in Britain in collaboration with AstraZeneca, a British pharmaceutical company.
Pfizer is expected to seek the release of its vaccine by the end of the month. Like most others, it will require two doses and injections must be given weeks apart, company protocols show.
Though the vaccine appears to offer a high level of protection, it's not clear how long immunity would last and whether the vaccine might cause any health problems. No serious side effects have been noted but it's early days yet.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is recruiting 8,000 volunteers for the Phase 3 clinical trials of at least four COVID-19 vaccine candidates at 20 federal medical facilities across the U.S.
Providence researchers will begin testing on 36 people as part of a Phase 1 trial of a drug developed in collaboration with two biotech companies -- OncoSec and UbiVac.
Oregon health officials predict they’ll be ready when a vaccine arrives, and federal authorities promise one by early next year. But no one knows how effective or safe it will be and who will get it.