A top United States official leading the response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic claims U.S. citizens can expect a vaccine to be delivered in January 2021.
Dr. Robert Kadlec, the Department of Health and Human Services' assistant secretary of preparedness and response, said in an email Friday that the Trump administration "is accelerating production of safe and effective vaccines .. to ensure delivery starting January 2021," the Associated Press reports via FOX 17 News.
That timeline does contradict what President Donald Trump has promised at rallies, debates and press conferences, claiming a vaccine could arrive within weeks.
"We think we can start sometime in October," Trump said during a White House briefing in September, the Associated Press reports.
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Thursday that there could be 100 million vaccine doses available by the end of 2020, but only with authorization from the Federal Drug Administration. Dr. Moncef Slaoui, who is leading the government's vaccine effort, told Marketwatch Friday that researchers could know "by late October, or November, or in December" depending on if one of the vaccines is effective, but it could take weeks to get emergency authorization to administer it.
The White House did not provide a specific date when asked by the Associated Press about the timetable for the vaccine, but said it was Trump's priority to distribute it "as soon as possible."
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