Pfizer CEO: "Cannot Announce Vaccine Trial Results Before US Election... Not a Republican Vaccine"

As Trump Promised, Pre-Election Release Impossible
Pfizer Stock Falls as Early Release Hopes Fade

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Albert Bourla, CEO of the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer, which is developing a vaccine for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), expressed that he feels political pressure as he stated he would not announce clinical trial results before the presidential election, sparking controversy. It is known that President Donald Trump has been pressuring pharmaceutical companies and health authorities by repeatedly declaring during his election campaigns that a vaccine will be available soon.

On the 27th (local time), CEO Bourla said during a video conference with investors held for earnings announcements that regarding the early results of the Phase 3 clinical trial of the COVID-19 vaccine co-developed with Germany’s BioNTech, "Early clinical results are expected by the end of this month, but since external expert review will take about a week, it will be difficult for the results to be released before the presidential election." He added, "There is significant pressure related to the vaccine release, and there are even talks that politics is accelerating vaccine development. However, this vaccine is neither Republican nor Democratic," stating that vaccine development will continue regardless of political pressure.

He continued, "Whether the clinical trial results are positive or negative, if there is decisive information, we will inform the public as soon as the necessary administrative procedures are completed," and "The timing will be within one week from when we become aware of the results." Prior to CEO Bourla’s remarks, Pfizer announced that it is not yet ready to release the clinical trial results of the COVID-19 vaccine. Pfizer stated that out of 42,000 participants in the Phase 3 clinical trial, 36,000 have received the second dose of the vaccine and they are currently awaiting the clinical results.

Contrary to President Trump’s declaration that the vaccine would be released before the election, news that the vaccine’s release before the election is unlikely caused Pfizer’s stock price to fall. On that day, Pfizer’s stock closed at $37.43, down 1.44% from the previous session. Earlier, on the 23rd, during a presidential debate, President Trump said, "Several pharmaceutical companies are conducting research and it is going very well," and "The vaccine is already ready and will be released within weeks."

Currently, in the United States, four pharmaceutical companies?Moderna, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson (J&J)?are conducting Phase 3 clinical trials, the final stage of clinical testing. Among them, Pfizer and Moderna aim to submit clinical results to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by the end of next month to receive emergency use authorization by December.