Study: Pfizer, Moderna vaccines reduce COVID-19 infection risk by 90% after second dose

Updated: Mar 29, 2021 / 10:46 AM CDT

FILE – In this March 1, 2021, file photo, a patient receives a shot of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at a CVS Pharmacy branch in Los Angeles. California is expanding its vaccine eligibility to anyone 50 and over starting in April and anyone 16 and over on April 15. Gov. Gavin Newsom said, Thursday, March 25, 2021, that California expects to receive 2.5 million doses a week in the first half of April and more than 3 million a week in the second half of the month. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

ATLANTA (NewsNation Now) — The COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer Inc with BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc are highly effective and reduced the risk of infection by 90% by two weeks after the second shot among healthcare personnel and first responders, according to a the U.S. study released Monday.

The findings from a study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the real-world use of these messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines confirm what was seen in large controlled clinical trials conducted before they received emergency use authorizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

“This study shows that our national vaccination efforts are working. The authorized mRNA COVID-19 vaccines provided early, substantial real-world protection against infection for our nation’s health care personnel, first responders, and other frontline essential workers,” said CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, MD, MPH. “These findings should offer hope to the millions of Americans receiving COVID-19 vaccines each day and to those who will have the opportunity to roll up their sleeves and get vaccinated in the weeks ahead. The authorized vaccines are the key tool that will help bring an end to this devastating pandemic.”