FDA: 'Science and data' guided vaccine decision

The head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the agency's decision to approve the nation's first COVID-19 vaccine was driven by "science and data," not by "any other external pressure."Dr. Steven Hahn made the remarks at a briefing Saturday morning. Hahn said the FDA made the review process "as transparent as possible" to help ensure public trust in the vaccine.

"Our transparency is arming health care providers with the tools they need to make decisions about what is appropriate for their patients. This transparency should also help assure the public that this vaccine met the FDA's rigorous standards for quality, safety and efficacy," he said.

On Friday, the FDA gave the final go-ahead to the vaccine, launching emergency vaccinations in a bid to end the pandemic. Shots will begin early next week. The FDA called the vaccine from Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech safe and strongly protective. But initial doses are scarce and rationed, with health workers and nursing home residents first in line.

Enough for the general population isn't expected until spring, and experts urge people to mask up and keep their distance during a long, grim winter. The announcement kicks off a massive logistical operation involving the federal and state governments, private companies and health care workers to quickly distribute limited vaccine supplies throughout the U.S.

About 3 million doses of the vaccine are expected in the first shipments around the country, according to officials with Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration's vaccine development program. A similar amount is to be held in reserve for those recipients' second dose.

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