MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US expects to have immunized 100 million people against Covid-19 by March

The push should start within weeks, when vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna-NIH are expected to be approved

The United States hopes to have immunized 100 million people against Covid-19 by the end of February, a top official said on Wednesday, which is approximately 40% of the country's adult population.

The push should start within weeks, when vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna-NIH are expected to be approved. Each of these require two doses, the second after three weeks and four weeks, respectively.

“Between mid-December, and the end of February, we will have potentially immunized 100 million people,” Dr Moncef Slaoui, scientific adviser to the government's Operation Warp Speed (OWS) program, told reporters.

This, he continued, would cover the “at-risk” population comprising the elderly, health care workers and first responders.

There will be an “ample” amount of vaccine to immunize three million residents of long-term care facilities in December, said the former pharmaceutical executive, who was recruited by the administration of President Donald Trump in spring.

The rest of the first tranche would be enough to reach the bulk of health care workers, if states and other territories agree with federal recommendations to prioritize this population.

As production of the two vaccines expands, 20 million will be reached in December, 30 million in January and 50 million in February, making 100 million total. This figure, however, excludes other vaccines by Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca-Oxford that are in the late stages of development.