Drugmakers will start coronavirus vaccine production by end of summer, Trump health officials say

By | July 13, 2020

In this May 4, 2020 photo provided by the University of Maryland School of Medicine, the first patient enrolled in Pfizer’s COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine clinical trial at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, receives an injection.

University of Maryland School of Medicine | AP

U.S. health officials and drugmakers expect to start producing potential coronavirus vaccine doses by the end of the summer, a senior administration official said Monday.

The U.S. is aiming to deliver 300 million doses of a vaccine for Covid-19 by early 2021. The manufacturing process is already underway even though they aren’t sure which vaccine, if any, will work, a senior Trump administration officials told reporters on a conference call Monday. He said they are already buying equipment, securing the manufacturing sites and, in some cases, acquiring the raw materials.

“Exactly when the vaccine materials will be in production and manufacturing? It’s probably four to six weeks away,” the official said. “But we will be actively manufacturing by the end of the summer.”

Because of the pandemic, U.S. health officials and researchers have been accelerating the development of vaccine candidates by investing in multiple stages of research even though doing so could be for naught if the vaccine ends up not being effective or safe.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

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