The World Health Organization said Monday there may never be a magical cure for the coronavirus even as scientists and drugmakers across the globe race to find a safe and effective vaccine.
Scientists have made progress in identifying treatments that can help people with the most severe forms of Covid-19, and a number of vaccines are in late-stage trials, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a press conference from the agency’s Geneva headquarters. “However, there is no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be.”
Tedros wasn’t asked about Russia’s claims that it will be ready to start mass inoculations in October.
There are no-FDA approved drugs for the coronavirus, which has infected more than 18 million people worldwide and killed at least 689,625, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
In May, the FDA granted antiviral drug remdesivir an emergency use authorization, allowing hospitals and doctors to use the drug on patients hospitalized with the disease even though the drug has not been formally approved by the agency. The FDA has also said it is looking at dexamethasone, a steroid already authorized in the U.K. for the treatment of Covid-19.
However, public health officials say there is no returning to “normal” until there’s a vaccine. There are more than 150 vaccines under development worldwide, according to the WHO. At least 25 are already in clinical trials. On Thursday, senior administration officials at the Department of Health and Human Services said drug companies Pfizer and Moderna, which both began a phase-three trial for their leading vaccine candidates last week, have already vaccinated “several hundred people” within the first few days.
Hellbound and Down 