AND THE REST OF US WITH
CORONAVIRUS."
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>>> AND THIS MORNING, THE CHIEF
EXECUTIVES OF NINE DRUG
COMPANIES PLEDGED NOT TO SEEK
REGULATORY APPROVAL BEFORE THE
SAFETY AND EFFICACY OF THEIR
EXPERIMENTAL CORONAVIRUS
VACCINES HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED IN
PHASE 3 CLINICAL TRIALS.
ACCORDING TO "THE WASHINGTON
POST," IN AN EXTRAORDINARY
EFFORT TO BOLSTER PUBLIC FAITH
IN A VACCINE AMID PRESIDENT
TRUMP’S PUBLIC RUSH TO INTRODUCE
A VACCINE BEFORE ELECTION DAY,
THE JOINT STATEMENT READS IN
PART, WE BELIEVE THIS PLEDGE
WILL HELP ENSURE PUBLIC
CONFIDENCE IN THE RIGOROUS
SCIENTIFIC AND REGULATORY
PROCESS BY WHICH COVID-19
VACCINES ARE EVALUATED AND MAY
ALTIMA THELY BE APPROVED.
THE STATEMENT ALSO INCLUDED A
VOW THAT THE COMPANIES WOULD
ONLY SUBMIT FOR APPROVAL OR
EMERGENCY USE AUTHORIZATION
AFTER DEMONSTRATING SAFETY AND
EFFICACY THROUGH A PHASE 3
CLINICAL STUDY THAT IS DESIGNED
AND CONDUCTED TO MEET
REQUIREMENTS OF EXPERT
REGULATORY AUTHORITIES, SUCH AS
THE FDA.
JOINING US NOW, "MORNING JOE"
CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT
DR. DAVE CAMPBELL AND DEAN OF
THE BROWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF
PUBLIC HEALTH, DR. ASHISH JHA.
DR. JHA, I’LL START WITH YOU AND
ASK YOU WHERE WE ARE WITH THE
CORONAVIRUS VACCINE.
PEOPLE ARE GOING BACK TO SCHOOL,
THE YEAR RESTARTS IN A WAY.
I’VE NOTICED PEOPLE LOOSENING
THEIR OWN PERSONAL RESTRICTIONS
ON THE VIRUS.
IS THIS SOMETHING WE CAN LOOK AT
AS BEHIND US OR STILL MORE
COMING?
>> YEAH, GOOD MORNING, MIKA,
THANKS FOR HAVING ME ON.
UNFORTUNATELY, IT IS NOT BEHIND
US, AS MUCH AS WE WOULD ALL LIKE
TO PUT IT HYPED US AND MOVE ON
WITH OUR LIVES.
WHEN I LOOK AT WHERE WE ARE
TODAY, WE WENT INTO MEMORIAL DAY
WITH ABOUT 20,000 CASES A DAY.
OF COURSE, WE SAW A HUGE SPIKE
OVER THE SUMMER.
WE ENTERED LABOR DAY WITH ABOUT
40,000 CASES A DAY.
ABOUT TWICE AS HIGH AS WE WERE
ON MEMORIAL DAY.
WE’RE ENTERING THE FALL WITH
KIDS COMING BACK, COLLEGE KIDS
COMING BACK AND MORE PEOPLE
SPENDING TIME INDOORS.
I AM WORRIED.
I AM WORRIED ABOUT WHERE WE ARE.
I’M CERTAINLY WORRIED ABOUT ANY
SENSE PEOPLE HAVE THAT THIS IS
ALL BEHIND US.
>> DR. DAVE, FASCINATING
STATEMENT BY THE TOP
PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES IN
AMERICA, WHO APPEAR TO BE
PUSHING BACK AGAINST THE
PRESIDENT AND THE HEAD OF THE
FDA, WHO HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT
SHORTCUTS, NOT GOING THROUGH THE
THIRD PHASE OF THESE CLINICAL
TRIALS AND TRYING TO RUSH THE
VACCINE FOR ELECTION DAY.
WE HAD JONATHAN LEMIRE SAYING
FOR MONTHS THAT THE WHITE HOUSE
HAS BEEN OBSESSED WITH A VACCINE
AS THEIR OCTOBER SURPRISE.
IT LOOKS NOW LIKE ACTUALLY THE
PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES MAY BE
PUTTING THE BRAKES ON AND
SAYING, WAIT A SECOND.
WE’RE GOING TO MAKE THESE
VACCINES GO THROUGH THE
REGULATORY PROCESS TO MAKE SURE
THEY’RE SAFE BEFORE WE START
GIVING THEM TO MILLIONS OF
PEOPLE.
>> IN LARGE PART, JOE, THAT’S
CORRECT, BUT MY INTERPRETATION
OF THESE STATEMENTS FROM THE TOP
COMPANIES THAT ARE MAKING THE
VACCINES IS, PERHAPS, A LITTLE
DIFFERENT AND A LITTLE MORE
THOUGHTFUL ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE
SAYING.
THEY’RE TELLING US THAT THEY ARE
GOING TO WAIT UNTIL THEY HAVE
WHAT THEY BELIEVE IS SCIENTIFIC,
CLINICAL PROOF OF THE SAFETY AND
EFFICACY.
I DON’T SEE THEM TELLING US
THEY’RE GOING TO WAIT UNTIL THE
END OF A PHASE 3 CLINICAL TRIAL.
THAT’S A LONG WAY OFF.
SO, THEY’RE TRYING TO COMFORT A
SKITTISH COUNTRY WHERE
TWO-THIRDS OF AMERICANS IN THE
"USA TODAY" POLL JUST CAME OUT
AND TOLD US THAT THOSE
TWO-THIRDS OF AMERICANS WOULD
NOT TAKE A VACCINE WHEN IT FIRST
COMES OUT.
SO, AS WE SEE THESE NUMBER OF
LARGE COMPANIES TELLING US THAT
THEY ARE GOING TO STICK TO THE
SCIENCE, THEY’RE GOING TO STICK
TO THE IDEA OF THINKING OF THE
COMMUNITY FIRST RATHER THAN ANY
POLITICAL PRESSURES, IT’S VERY
COMFORTING, BUT I THINK THAT THE
IDEA OF SEEING A VACCINE EVEN
INTO NEXT YEAR, I’M CONFIDENT
THEY’RE TELLING US WE MAY DO
THAT, BUT THAT WE ARE GOING TO
STICK TO THE SCIENCE FIRST.
>> DR. JHA, WE HEARD FROM THE
BEGINNING OF THIS, BACK IN
FEBRUARY AND MARCH WHEN IT
REALLY GRABBED EVERYONE’S
ATTENTION, THAT THERE WOULD BE A
SECOND WAVE.
IT MIGHT COME BACK IN THE FALL
AND IT MIGHT COME BACK IN THE
WINTER AND CORRESPOND WITH FLU
SEASON AND BE, PERHAPS, EVEN
WORSE THAN THE FIRST WAVE.
WE’RE HEARING THAT AGAIN NOW AS
WE TURN OUT OF SUMMER, AFTER
LABOR DAY.
SOME SCHOOLS OPENING UP AGAIN.
SOME PEOPLE TRYING TO GET BACK
TO SOME SEMBLANCE OF NORMAL
LIFE.
THE IMHE JUST CAME OUT WITH A
HUGE PROJECTION OF POTENTIAL
DEATHS BY THE END OF THE YEAR.
WHAT INTERVENTIONS DO YOU SEE AS
A PUBLIC HEALTH EXPERT THAT
MIGHT BLUNT THAT AND NOT MAYBE
STOP A SECOND WAVE BUT MAKE IT
BETTER THAN SO MANY OF THESE
PROJECTIONS ARE SHOWING?
>> THE GOOD NEWS IS WE KNOW SO
MUCH MORE THAN WE DID BACK IN
MARCH.
WE KNOW HOW THE VIRUS SPREADS.
WE HAVE A LOT MORE INFORMATION
ABOUT HOW TO CURTAIL IT AND WE
ARE BETTER ARTICLED GOING INTO
THE FALL.
THE KEY THINGS WE NEED TO DO, WE
KNOW THEM.
AVOID LARGE INDOOR GATHERINGS.
THAT’S GOING TO GET HARDER AS IT
GETS COLDER.
I THINK IN MANY, MANY PLACES
THINGS LIKE BAR AND INDOOR
DINING HAS TO BE REALLY LIMITED.
AND SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES ARE
CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, GRADE
SCHOOLS HAVE TO GET PRIORITIZED.
IF WE’RE REALLY GOING TO DO
THIS.
IT TURNS OUT, AS WE’VE BEEN
SAYING SINCE MARCH, IF WE HAVE
EXCELLENT SURVEILLANCE TESTING,
A LOT OF PRIVATE SCHOOLS HAVE
GONE OUT AND BOUGHT SURVEILLANCE
TESTING SO THEY CAN BRING THEIR
KIDS BACK IN.
I WANT PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO BE ABLE
TO DO THE SAME THING.
THE THIRD BUT CERTAINLY NOT THE
LEAST IS SHEVERYBODY WEARING
MASKS.
ARE WE GOING TO AVOID THE SECOND
WAVE?
MAYBE WANT.
CAN WE AVOID 400,000 DEATHS AS
IMHE IS SUGGESTING?
ABSOLUTELY.
IT’S REALLY UP TO US AND THE
TOOLS ARE IN FRONT OF US.
>> YEAH.
AND YET YOU HAVE THE PRESIDENT
OF THE UNITED STATES MOCKING A
REPORTER YESTERDAY WHO WOULDN’T