Since the genetic sequence for the coronavirus was first made public in January,

scientists worldwide have been working on developing a vaccine.

Never before in history has it taken less than several years for a new vaccine to be produced.

Dr. Anthony Fauci says a COVID inoculation could be available to the public as soon as next January.

And this emphasis on speed has some people worried that politicians are pressuring scientists to cut corners.

But other people just want to know how soon they can get in line.

So where do you stand? People are being asked,

would you get a COVID-19 vaccine or said another way, would you get a theoretical COVID-19 vaccine

because there is no COVID-19 vaccine? That's Dr. Paul Offutt. Offutt is the director of the vaccine

education center at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. He was also co-inventor of a

rotavirus vaccine and serves on the Vaccine Advisory Committee for the FDA. If you ask me that

question, if you said, would I get a COVID-19 vaccine? My answer to that would be not until I see the

data. Let me see whether or not my group is represented there,

whatever it is, whether it's African American or Latinx or obese or a health care worker or

someone over 65. You want to see that your group is represented in the safety data and the

efficacy data. But Paul says that data may not come for months. And when it does start to trickle in, don't expect certainty.

Instead, assume that you'll have to make educated guesses.

The question when you launch a medical product is not, do I know everything?

The question is, do you know enough to say that the benefits of this particular product outweigh its theoretical risks? I mean, do you know enough to say that the benefits of this particular product, that way it's theoretical

risks.

I mean, do you know enough to say that?

Sometimes there's unpleasant surprises, but that's the nature of medical breakthroughs.

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