In a telephone interview, Mango said the administration is confident it will have 100 million doses of an effective vaccine for elderly people, who are more vulnerable to the virus, available before the end of the year. He stressed that “there’s never a 100% guarantee” that timelines will be met.
20 Million Doses
If a vaccine is approved in October, only about 20 million doses will be ready for distribution and use, he said.
“Whether that happens in October, November or December is a bit out of our hands,” Mango said, referring to a vaccine approval. “I would say it’s possible, it’s certainly possible, it happens in October. It’s more likely it happens in November or December.”
Earlier this year, the president ordered a program called “Operation Warp Speed” to greatly accelerate development and production of a coronavirus vaccine. The medicines typically require years to develop before they’re approved for sale.
Trump, Mango said, “has assembled an unbelievable team of some of the world’s best scientists, manufacturing experts, logisticians, public health experts. And what we’re doing is maximizing the probability that the American people will have a safe and effective vaccine as quickly as possible.”
--With assistance from Olivia Raimonde.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.