Russia just approved a COVID vaccine—but that’s not necessarily good news
A highly-effective and widely available vaccine will likely be necessary to get the COVID-19 pandemic under control, save lives, and return to normal life. But performing proper due diligence when it comes to testing will save lives, too. (Pixabay /)The race to develop a safe and effective vaccine against the novel coronavirus has drawn the attention of virologists and other health researchers the world over. As cases continue to climb around the globe, a vaccine remains amongst the most promising ways to overcome the pandemic.Yesterday, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced that the country’s health regulators (Russia’s equivalent of the FDA) had approved a COVID-19 vaccine for limited use. However, the vaccine itself has yet to complete clinical trials, having only made it through the second of three phases. But approving the vaccine without completing that last phase could prove harmful, both immediately and down the road.The vaccine, known as Sputnik...