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Time for Kids December 11, 2020
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Health Government Vaccine Update
本文 On November 30, the drug company Moderna asked the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency approval of its COVID-19 vaccine. If the FDA agrees, enough vaccine for millions of people could be ready by the end of the year.

Moderna is the second company to ask for emergency approval. That would mean a drug could be used before testing is complete. Pfizer made its request on November 20. Its vaccine was approved in the United Kingdom on December 2.

In the U.S., cases of COVID-19 are on the rise. Recently, the nation has had more than 160,000 new cases per day, and more than 1,400 daily deaths. Health officials say the numbers could climb even higher as a result of Thanksgiving travel. At press time, the novel coronavirus had infected nearly 14 million people in the U.S. More than 268,000 had died. Worldwide, 63 million people had caught the virus. Nearly 1.5 million had died.

Before the FDA approves a vaccine, scientists will decide if there is enough evidence that it works and is safe. A late phase of Moderna’s vaccine trials began in July. It involved 30,000 people. The company reports that its drug is 94.1% effective at preventing COVID-19. It is 100% effective at preventing severe cases of the disease, Moderna says.

総評

出題者から皆様へ

コロナ禍が教えてくれるもの：

地球規模で襲ってくるコロナウイルスは、ある意味で人間の「lifestyle」のみならず、「考え方」まで変えてしまうことは、15世紀に大量の死者を出したペスト（黒死病）のその後の世界史を見れば一目瞭然です。

ペストに罹れば人種・信条、そして身分や貧富を問わず誰も死ぬという点で、無差別・公平です。当時のがんじがらめに縛り付けていた中世世界の社会制度や宗教などから解放され、人間賛歌のルネッサンス（Renaissance）文化が生まれたのです。

これは現代史のコロナでも同じことが言えるのではないでしょうか？人間は「尊厳に値する」がゆえに一人一人が自らを精神的に鍛え上げねばならないということですね。

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今回の解説は、次の通りです。

第1段落の'If the FDA agrees, enough vaccine for millions of people could be ready by the end of the year.'です。

解説ページを参照してください。

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