The Lame-Duck Vaccine

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In the end, there was no October surprise. Donald Trump spent months declaring that a COVID-19 vaccine was imminent, a gambit that failed to pressure the FDA into an approval before Election Day but did succeed, nevertheless, in eroding the American public’s confidence in a vaccine. It was only yesterday that Pfizer released very early but very promising results suggesting that its COVID-19 vaccine candidate could be more than 90 percent effective. The company plans to seek emergency authorization from the FDA later this month, when required safety data are complete.

If authorized, the initial rollout of this vaccine will likely