Dr. Anthony Fauci says data shows that Russia’s “Sputnik V” coronavirus vaccine is “quite effective.”
The chief medical adviser to President Biden shared his optimistic view of the vaccine during an appearance on The Hugh Hewitt Show on Monday.
“I mean, certainly the data on the Russian vaccine, I’ve taken a look at some of the reports. … [Sputnik V], I believe, is quite effective,” he said during the radio broadcast.
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Fauci also alluded to China’s efforts to manufacture a vaccine, saying it “very well might be good,” but he hasn’t personally reviewed the data yet.
Last month, British scientific journal the Lancet published a study demonstrating the Russian vaccine was 91% effective against COVID-19. The experiment conducted a phase 3 trial of about 20,000 adults in Moscow across 26 hospitals between September and November of last year.
Fauci previously expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of Russia’s vaccine, saying last August he hoped Russia had “actually, definitively proven that the vaccine is safe and effective” prior to widespread use, but he “seriously doubt[ed]” it.
“So, if we wanted to take the chance of hurting a lot of people or giving them something that doesn’t work, we could start doing this, you know, next week if we wanted to, but that’s not the way it works,” he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the “world’s first” coronavirus vaccine on Aug. 11. Putin claimed his daughter received the vaccine, and he is scheduled to receive the shot on Tuesday, according to a report by the Associated Press.
The Food and Drug Administration has granted temporary emergency use authorization to the Moderna, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines.
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More than 123 million people worldwide have contracted COVID-19, more than 2.7 million deaths have been attributed to the disease, and 2.7 million Russians, or 1.9% of the nation’s population, have been fully vaccinated, according to the Johns Hopkins University coronavirus tracker.
The Washington Examiner did not immediately hear back from representatives from the Kremlin, and the FDA declined to comment.
