The US-based vaccine Moderna is 94.5% effective at protecting people from COVID-19, according to phase three trial reports.

The vaccine has also been proven to remain stable at -20°C, equal to household freezers and medical freezers, for up to six months and can remain in fridges for up to 30 days and room temperature for up to 12 hours.

Last week, a vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech had been found to be 90% effective but needs to be stored at about -70°C – much lower temperatures than the Moderna vaccine. 

However, following the breaking news, governments around the world rushed to secure a batch of the new vaccine, including the EU, which procured 300 million doses of the Pzifer vaccine. 

Malta, which forms part of the EU joint procurement deal, has been allocated a total of 333,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Tag someone who needs to know this