U.S. likely to possess enough COVID-19 vaccines for all vulnerable U.S. Citizen end of the year: official

The us is probably going to possess enough safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines available to inoculate the foremost vulnerable Americans by the top of 2020, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said on Wednesday.

The U.S. government is "cautiously optimistic" that one or two vaccines, likely from Pfizer Inc or Moderna Inc, are going to be available by the top of the year and may begin to be distributed to Americans, officials said during a press conference .

Azar said he expects all seniors, healthcare workers, and first responders are going to be ready to receive a vaccine as soon as January, with the remainder of the American public ready to get a vaccine by April.

Companies participating within the U.S. government's effort to develop a vaccine for COVID-19, dubbed Operation Warp Speed, have begun developing manufacturing capabilities even before any vaccinations are authorized by regulators.

In an letter published last week, Pfizer said it's unlikely to possess enough data to submit for a U.S. regulatory authorization until late November, after the U.S. presidential election.

The coronavirus outbreak has been worsening in recent weeks as weather pushes Americans indoors, raising the prospect of contracting the virus. Some 38 U.S. states and two territories have reported rising case counts. quite 8 million Americans are infected with the novel coronavirus and quite 200,000 have died.