FDA Says Novel COVID-19 Vaccine Trials May Eventually Replace Placebo

FDA might allow COVID-19 vaccine makers to test the efficacy of their investigational vaccines against any vaccine that gains FDA approval, in a bid to help resolve ethical questions around placebo-controlled studies, although the agency continues to push for sponsors to use placebo-controlled trials for as long as possible. The agency’s stance comes as leading vaccine makers express concern that they may be ethically obligated to unblind their vaccine trials when a vaccine is approved or authorized for emergency use...