Gov. Gavin Newsom has announced that Washington, Oregon and Nevada have joined California’s COVID-19 Scientific Safety Review Workgroup, which will independently review the safety and efficacy of any vaccine approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for distribution. Last week, Newsom announced the panel of nationally-acclaimed scientists with expertise in immunization and public health.

“California has led with science and data through the COVID pandemic and when a vaccine becomes available, we will leverage our scientific expertise to verify its safety to give everyone the confidence they need to make important decisions regarding the health of their families,” Newsom said. “This virus transcends our borders and we are grateful to partner with our neighboring states through our Scientific Safety Review Workgroup for a healthy and safe path forward for all our communities.”

The governors of the other states will identify public health experts to join California’s workgroup to guide the review of any vaccine approved by the FDA. While there is no proven vaccine for COVID-19 yet, the top health experts will review any vaccine that receives federal approval and verify its safety before California, Washington, Oregon and Nevada will make the vaccine available to the public.

In April, California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado and Nevada joined a western states pact on a shared vision for fighting COVID-19 and reopening economies. Leaders from those states urged congressional leaders in May to approve $1 trillion in COVID-19 relief for state and local governments and are partnering to pilot a project testing new exposure notification technology pioneered by Google and Apple.

For information, visit gov.ca.gov.