(Newser)
– Buck is now stopping with President Biden to launch the coronavirus vaccine and promised on Tuesday that it will increase supply and provide “enough vaccine to vaccinate 300 million Americans by the end of summer, early fall.” Biden said the federal government plans to buy an additional 200 million doses of vaccine – 100 each from Moderna and Pfizer, bringing the total supply to 600 million, Politico reports. Both vaccines are two-dose regimens. Currently, there are only about 260 million Americans considered eligible for vaccination, but the number could increase depending on the results of Moderna and Pfizer clinical trials for children up to 12 years old, reports Washington Post. Authorities say that despite the additional order, limited manufacturing capacity means it is unlikely to increase supply immediately before April, every year. New York Times.
“This will allow millions of Americans to be vaccinated earlier than previously anticipated,” said the president, who described the action as a “war effort.” Biden also announced that there will be a 16% increase in vaccine doses shipped to states in the next three weeks, following complaints of major failure, the PA reports. When taking office, Biden initially pledged to vaccinate 100 million Americans in 100 days, but experts said the pace should be doubled for things to return to near normal by the end of the summer. Biden also said on Tuesday that state governors will now be informed about the allocation of the vaccine three weeks before delivery. “So far, we’ve had to guess how many vaccines,” each week, he said. “This is unacceptable. Lives are at stake.” (Read more stories about the coronavirus vaccine.)