Early Plans
Despite the demand for a vaccine and the logistical challenges of rolling it out to hundreds of millions of Americans, the Trump administration is still early in the planning phases for how that immense effort will go.
The Department of Defense and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are expected to be heavily involved, and the role of the private sector is less clear.
“It may not be going through CVS,” Fauci told Bloomberg, referring to the drugstore chain CVS Health Corp. “The DOD together with the CDC is getting very involved in how you get the supply chain to the people. That has not yet been worked out.”
The Warp Speed program is also looking at using the military, said Jonathan Hoffman, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, said during a press briefing July 30.
The Defense Department is examining “how do we take advantage of the commercial capability of the private sector to handle things like distribution, and where will either the DOD step in to help manage that process, or if necessary will DOD be required to step in and actually physically deliver items itself,” he said.
At least four states, California, Minnesota, North Dakota and Florida, are helping develop the early stages of a plan to distribute vaccine once it’s available, CQ Roll Call reported on Monday. The early stage plan is meant to explore “model approaches” on vaccine distribution, the publication reported, describing the program as a highly preliminary effort.
In a message to Bloomberg, California’s Department of Public Health described the program as a “joint planning mission.” Florida’s health department confirmed its participation, though said no agenda for the meeting had been set.
In the meantime, companies and scientists developing the vaccines are rushing to get data to back their use, or move onto more promising targets.
Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE, which have a competing vaccine, are also signing up patients. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said at a Washington Post event last week that the drugmaker expects rapid approval from the FDA, at least for emergency use, and will have enough of the shot to begin distribution this fall.
“The main goal right now is to make sure we have a vaccine,” Bourla said. “There are two enemies — the virus, and time.”