WASHINGTON, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US will have enough coronavirus vaccines for every adult by the end of May, President Joe Biden said.
This will be two months earlier than previously expected, but Biden said the vaccination drive must be extended, too, and people convinced to take it.
And he warned people to “stay vigilant” because “this fight is far from over”, with new variants a major concern.
His caution is at odds with some states, which are relaxing restrictions in order to boost their economies.
Although there has been a sharp fall in cases since the start of the year, in some areas that drop has been levelling off, fuelling fears of another wave.
The US has recorded 28.7 million infections and 516,000 deaths related to Covid-19 since the pandemic began, according to Johns Hopkins University research.
More than 76 million vaccination doses have been administered – covering 15.3% of the population and the US remains on track to meet Biden’s pledge of delivering 100 million Covid-19 vaccine doses in his first 100 days in office.
The president said that drug manufacturer Merck – which this year discontinued work on its own vaccine – would now be helping Johnson & Johnson to produce its newly approved one-shot drug.
“We’re now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America by the end of May,” he said, adding it was “the type of collaboration between companies we saw in World War Two”.
But the president acknowledged that supply was only one issue, with the nation needing to extend its vaccination drive and convince people to take the shots.
Another key announcement was the pledge to give every teacher at least one shot by the end of March, and speed up the reopening of schools.
Covid-19 data shows that, while infections and deaths have declined in recent weeks, they are still at high levels relative to other countries.
The 28.7 million total confirmed US infections is nearly double that of second-highest India (11 million) and Brazil (10.5 million), according to Johns Hopkins University research
But the US ranks ninth in terms of deaths per 100,000 population, behind countries such as the UK and Italy
At least 90,000 more Americans are expected to have died with the virus by 1 June, an Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) projection says. By late May, the virus will kill around 500 Americans per day – down from approximately 2,000 now. — NNN-AGENCIES