- An intense global effort is underway to develop and manufacture an effective coronavirus vaccine, something Russia claimed in a recent announcement it’s already got in the works (much to the skepticism of global health authorities).
- As a joke, one man filmed a video in which he showed his “reaction” over a period of time after having supposedly taken the Russian coronavirus vaccine.
- He starts the video by explaining that he took the vaccine and feels fine, but it progresses to the point of him saying he now feels stronger and doesn’t need glasses anymore.
Russia achieved its goal of being the first country in the world to approve a coronavirus vaccine, but health experts around the world have already made clear — both overtly as well as with a subtle degree of shade thrown at the country — that the designation of merely being “first” is probably as far as Russia’s efforts go. President Putin approved the vaccine in spite of the fact that Russia has yet to prove to the outside world that its vaccine is safe or effective — in fact, all Russia did was approve a drug before the critical Phase 3 trial even began. Unsurprisingly, the World Health Organization has not included the Russian vaccine in its list of COVID-19 vaccine candidates that are in advanced stages of testing around the globe.
Nevertheless, that hasn’t stopped one brave man from filming a hilarious reaction video after having (pretended) to take the vaccine.
In the footage he shot, this man appears to be holding a smartphone in front of a mirror and filming himself over a period of time. “I feel ok,” he says at the beginning (and remember, this is a joke). “It was just a small injection, and that was it.” The next day, he’s back in front of the mirror. I feel fine, he recounts. No side effects, no fever. “It’s good,” he concludes about the vaccine.
From there, things start changing. One week after supposedly being vaccinated, he’s now wearing a tight shirt. His Russian accent is more pronounced. “I feel powerful,” he happily says. “I don’t need glasses anymore.”
Two weeks after vaccination? “I feel strong. I hunt bears in the neighborhood.”
In all seriousness, this is how a top World Health Organization put it in an interview about the Russian vaccine, via First Post. “We don’t have sufficient information at this point to make a judgment,” Dr. Bruce Aylward said. “We’re currently in conversation with Russia to get additional information to understand the status of that product, the trials that have been undertaken, and then what the next steps might be.”
CNN has reported that Russia offered to help the US with its own race to develop an effective coronavirus vaccine, but America, no surprise, turned that offer down.
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany has also told reporters that Trump is aware of the Russian vaccine. She’s reiterated that American vaccines go through “rigorous” Phase 3 testing and are held to much higher standards, while the Russian vaccine is considered to be so half-baked that the US was never interested at all, US officials told CNN. “There’s no way in hell the US tries this (Russian vaccine) on monkeys, let alone people,” a person said.
