Courage in the Crisis
CMDA and COVID-19
Care for the Frontline Healthcare Worker as the Coronavirus Progresses
CMDA Statement on COVID-19 and Church Gatherings
Due to the high transmissibility of the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 with the resultant current spike in cases of COVID-19 across the United States, CMDA recommends that if churches continue to meet in person, the church should recommend effective masks for those in attendance over the age of 2 years. Data on the transmission of the omicron variant show that when a person becomes infected with the virus, they are most likely to transmit the virus to other individuals 24 hours prior to the onset of symptoms. This means that every person that gets COVID-19 is initially an asymptomatic spreader of the infection.
Further information is available here.
CMDA Update on COVID-19 Vaccines as of March 4, 2021
Three Operation Warp Speed vaccines have received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the FDA:
- On December 11, 2020, the FDA issued an EUA for Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine. A fact sheet on the vaccine can be found here.
- The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is an mRNA vaccine.
- Effectiveness of the vaccine was found to be 95 percent.
- Approval is for individuals 16 years of age and older.
- The vaccine is administered as a series of two doses (0.3mL each) three weeks apart.
- On December 18, 2020, the FDA issued an EUA for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine. A fact sheet on the vaccine can be found here.
- The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is an mRNA vaccine.
- Effectiveness of the vaccine was found to be 94.1 percent.
- Approval is for individuals 18 years of age and older.
- The vaccine is administered as a series of two doses (0.5mL each) four weeks apart.
- On February 27, 2021, the DFA issued an EUA for the Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) vaccine. A fact sheet on the vaccine can be found here.
- The vaccine is approved for individuals 18 years of age and older.
- The vaccine showed 67 percent effectiveness in preventing moderate to severe COVID-19 overall in all countries studied.
- The vaccine was 85 percent effective in preventing severe/critical COVID-19 that occurred at least 28 days post vaccination.
- The Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine is a viral vector vaccine using an adenovirus to carry a coronavirus gene into human cells.
- This vaccine has two advantages over the mRNA vaccines:
- It is a one-dose vaccine.
- It can be stored at refrigeration temperatures
- AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for emergency use in the United Kingdom.
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- A study published in Lancet found that overall effectiveness of the vaccine was 70.4 percent.
- The low dose/high dose regimen had an effectiveness of 90 percent.
- The high dose/high dose regimen had an effectiveness of 62.1 percent.
- Due to questions regarding unexpected results, AstraZeneca has not decided whether to apply to the FDA for an EUA.
- Novavax entered Phase 3 trials of its vaccine on December 28, 2020.
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- The Novavax vaccine is made from a stabilized form of the coronavirus spike protein combined with a proprietary adjuvant, MatrixMä.
- The vaccine is administered in two doses, 21 days apart.
- On December 11, 2020, Sanofi and GSK announced a delay in their COVID-19 vaccine due to a poor immune response in adults more than 50 years of age.
Ethical Concerns
Unfortunately, research performed by The Charlotte Lozier Institute has confirmed that five of the six vaccines listed above have used one of two different fetal cell lines derived from two separate decades-old abortions to assist in the development of these new vaccines. It is still unknown whether the vaccine from Sanofi used a fetal cell line because no information regarding their vaccine development has been published.
It is important to note that fetal cell lines can be used in three different stages of vaccine development: design, confirmation and ongoing production. Many ethicists, including those at the Charlotte Lozier Institute, believe that using a fetal cell line for ongoing vaccine production is more ethically problematic than using a fetal cell line for design or confirmation. The design and confirmation steps use a limited number of fetal cells while the production stage is continuous.
Below is a chart that designates the known involvement of fetal cell lines in the six leading vaccine candidates:
(The red X indicates the utilization of an abortion-derived fetal cell line. The green check indicates the step was free of any utilization of an abortion derived fetal cell line.)
If, as a CMDA member, you would like to advocate for the development of a COVID-19 vaccine that is free from any ethical concerns, you may do so at our Freedom2Care Action Center. It should take you less than 30 seconds.
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