Moderna Coronavirus Vaccine Clinical Trials Are 'On Track,' White House Task Force's Fauci Says

The clinical trials of Moderna Inc.'s MRNA novel coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine are "on track," according to National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci.

What Happened

Fauci, who is one of the lead members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said that the clinical trials require the vaccine to be administered in three doses to the human volunteers, CNBC reported.

The first two doses have been tested and a larger third dose is now being administered to check for adverse reactions, Fauci noted, according to CNBC.

The Moderna vaccine clinical trial started on March 16, and is being fast-tracked, but as per Fauci, it would still be another 12 to 18 months before it can be made available at a mass scale, even if it's approved for use.

"It'll take a few months to get the data to where we'll feel confident to go to the phase two, and then a few months from now we'll be in phase two and I think we're right on target for the year to year and a half," Fauci said at the White House press conference, per CNBC.

Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s INO coronavirus vaccine trials are also expected to begin this month.

Price Action

Moderna's shares closed 0.93% lower at $29.67 and traded slightly further lower in the after-hours session at $29.65.

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