President Trump said today that the United States will have enough Covid-19 vaccines for every American by April.
There's been a lot of news about the race to develop a coronavirus vaccine lately. Here's a look at some of the biggest developments:
- Exercise patience: The idea that anyone can say there’s going to be a coronavirus vaccine before the studies have even been completed is stunning, Dr. Richard Besser, a former acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said today. He said he is optimistic there will be a Covid-19 vaccine because of the large effort being put into making one and the variety of different vaccine types being tested.
- FDA head confident they'll produce a safe vaccine: US Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn said he has “unwavering confidence and trust” in his agency’s ability to approve a Covid-19 vaccine that is safe and effective. “I am often asked about how and when FDA will authorize or approve a vaccine to protect against Covid-19. Here is my answer: when the agency’s scientific experts have completed their review and are ready to do so, and not a moment before,” he tweeted today.
- The latest timeline on vaccine results: CDC director Dr. Robert Redfield said in a Senate hearing this week that the American public could expect to start seeing results from widespread coronavirus vaccination in the second or third quarter of 2021. Even if a vaccine for Covid-19 was released today, it would take six to nine months for enough people to receive it to create immunity, he said.
- What Trump is saying: Later in the day, the President told reporters Redfield was "confused" when he said that. "I think he made a mistake when he said that. It's just incorrect information," Trump said.
- The US' plan for free vaccines: The federal government released plans on Wednesday detailing how it will distribute Covid-19 vaccines once they've been OK'd. Operation Warp Speed aims to have Covid-19 vaccines moving to administration sites within 24 hours of an FDA license or emergency use authorization, an official said. And the aim is to make them free of charge.