The results of the most recent AstraZeneca tests in the United States seem to confirm that its vaccine against COVID-19 has been found to be 76 per cent effective and safe. It is an understatement to say that AstraZeneca has had a chequered start: marred by delays, then poor communication – incomplete, misleading results were initially announced – then plagued by production problems; blamed for poor planning by a panicked European leadership that saw its promised doses melt like ice cream in the sun; and, finally, rendered suspect by the temporary suspension of the vaccine.
Culture notes: Jabs that started a vaccine fight
Catherine Fieschi on how the world fell out trying to counter a pandemic
