US

Operation Warp Speed Official Says 20 Million Moderna Vaccines Will Be Distributed By End Of December

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Around 20 million Moderna vaccines will be distributed by the end of December, according to Moncef Slaoui, chief scientific advisor for Operation Warp Speed, CNN reported.

“I think that’s really excellent,” Slaoui said during a Wednesday news briefing, according to CNN.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) data re-confirmed Moderna’s vaccine was safe and affirmed it was 94.1% effective in its clinical trial of around 30,000 participants.

The FDA’s Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will review the clinical data Thursday and discuss approving emergency authorization for the Moderna vaccine, according to CNN. Slauoi said the U.S. government is working to receive more of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine. 

“We are working very closely with the company to ensure that we can support and help them address all the challenges in continuing to increase their capacity and output and also at the same time discussing how we may come to an agreement on the first option for an additional 100 million doses,” Slauoi said, according to CNN.

The U.S. made a “confirmed order commitment” of 200 million of Moderna vaccines in two orders, Moderna said in statement Dec. 11.

“Of the first 100 million doses purchased by the U.S. government, approximately 20 million doses will be delivered by the end of December 2020 and the balance will be delivered in the first quarter of 2021,” the statement said.

“Today’s new order of 100 million doses will be delivered in the second quarter of 2021. These deliveries are subject, in each case, to receipt of an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the vaccine,” the statement said.

The White House didn’t immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.