The United States is preparing for its first COVID-19 vaccine. U.S. Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams told the states that the COVID-19 vaccine could be ready by November. However, Trump’s administration stated that the United States will not participate in the global development of a COVID-19 vaccine. This refusal has led to hostility with the World Health Organization, as well as 170 other countries.

In December 2019, after the first case in Wuhan, China, COVID-19 increased into a pandemic, affecting millions of people around the world. After the WHO declared a pandemic situation, more than 150 countries increased the time and energy on researching vaccine development. However, the new COVID-19 vaccine has a clear possibility of failure. 

In the midst of the pandemic, the Russian government officially developed Sputnik V, the first vaccine designed to prevent the novel coronavirus, developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya Research Institute. The new vaccine has some positive results; Russian president Vladimir Putin’s daughter also got the vaccine, resulting in a rise and fall in body temperature.  Teachers, professors and medical professionals are planning to get their vaccination in late August to early September. After October, Sputnik V will be open for people around the world. Sputnik V is currently in its final clinical trial. Would it then be possible for us to go back to our ordinary, happy lives? Sadly, I am afraid not. The first Russian COVID-19 vaccine might be ineffective and here’s why. 

Malaysia, India and the Philippines discovered a mutant coronavirus, called D614G, that has ten times stronger infectious power. Noor Hisham Abdullah, the director-general of health in Malaysia, posted on Facebook that people need to be more aware and careful, as the virus can “spread easily if spread by an individual super spreader.” Due to the mutant COVID-19 virus, Director Abdullah explained that the research on the vaccine might become a futile attempt for the 167 countries presently researching the early COVID-19 virus that occurred in Wuhan, China. Furthermore, confirmed cases are rising dramatically in Japan, reaching 63,888 cases on Aug. 27. Researchers from the National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Japan collected about 3,700 samples about patients in Japan. They found a coronavirus with a new genetic sequence.

With mutations occurring, can we be reassured by the arrival of the vaccine? Definitely not. No one is sure when it will end, but that depends on our effort. Therefore, we should always maintain the awareness of self-prevention. Wearing a mask daily when in close contact with others, maintaining physical distance, and using hand sanitizer after outdoor activities are crucial. Lastly, we should thank the medical staff suffering from COVID-19 and further hope for this pandemic to end.