Immune To COVID? New Study Suggests Why

Margaret Keenan, a retired shop clerk who turns 91 next week, on Tuesday received the first shot in the United Kingdom’s COVID-19 vaccine program.

She was first in line at University Hospital Coventry, one of several hospitals around the country that are handling the initial phase of the British program, the Associated Press reported.

"I feel so privileged to be the first person vaccinated against COVID-19," Keenan said. "It’s the best early birthday present I could wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the New Year after being on my own for most of the year."

The United Kingdom is the first Western country to start a mass vaccination program. It's using the vaccine developed by U.S. drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech.

A panel of U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisers is expected to endorse Pfizer's vaccine as soon as this week. In the coming months, 50 million Americans could be vaccinated with it.

The FDA also is expected to give emergency authorization this month to another vaccine from drugmaker Moderna.

In the past seven days, the U.S. reported 15,658 coronavirus deaths, marking the deadliest week since April, CNN reported. More than 100,000 people are being treated for the virus in hospitals across the country.

Overall, the U.S. has recorded nearly 284,000 COVID-19 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Nearly 15 million infections of the new coronavirus have been confirmed. Worldwide, there have been more than 67 million infections and 1.5 million deaths.

Below are the latest developments in the pandemic.

United States

-President Donald Trump is expected to appear Tuesday at an "Operation Warp Speed" vaccine summit at the White House. The summit will also feature Vice President Mike Pence, government experts, state leaders and business executives as the administration lays out its vaccine plans. Trump is expected to sign an executive order saying vaccines procured by the government should go to Americans first, the AP reported.

-The vaccine summit comes as the New York Times reports the Trump administration passed on the chance to lock in supplies of Pfizer's vaccine beyond the 100 million doses the drug maker initially agreed to sell the government. The move could delay the delivery of a second batch of doses until Pfizer fulfills other international contracts. Dr. Moncef Slaoui, who is leading the government’s vaccine effort, told ABC's "Good Morning America" on Tuesday that the administration was looking at a number of different vaccines during the summer. He added, "No one reasonably would buy more from any one of those vaccines because we didn’t know which one would work and which one would be better than the other."

-Documents published Tuesday by the FDA said the Pfizer vaccine, which requires two doses, provides strong protection against COVID-19 within about 10 days of the first dose, the New York Times reported. Pfizer and BioNTech have said the vaccine had an efficacy rate of 95% after two doses administered three weeks apart. The new information shows the protection starts kicking in much earlier.

Worldwide

-Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, will receive a COVID-19 vaccine, but it's unlikely to be on camera, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told NBC's "Today" show on Tuesday. Because of their ages, Queen Elizabeth, 94, and Prince Phillip, 99, are among the most vulnerable groups first in line for a vaccine.

-The second person to receive a vaccine in England on Tuesday was an 81-year-old man named William Shakespeare, BBC.com reported. Like Keenan, he is a patient at University Hospital Coventry.

For the latest coronavirus information in your county and a full list of important resources to help you make the smartest decisions regarding the disease, check out our dedicated COVID-19 page.

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