Biden Vows Enough Vaccine for All US Adults by End of May

By Staff, Agencies

US President Joe Biden said his country expects to take delivery of enough coronavirus vaccine for all adults by the end of May, two months earlier than anticipated.

Biden pushed states to get at least one shot into the arms of teachers by the end of March to hasten schools reopening.

Biden also announced Tuesday that drug-maker Merck will help produce rival Johnson & Johnson’s newly approved one-shot vaccine, likening the partnership between the two drug companies to the spirit of national cooperation during World War II.

“We’re now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America by the end of May,” Biden said.

Despite the stepped-up pace of vaccine production, the work of inoculating Americans could extend well into the summer, officials said, depending both on the government’s capacity to deliver doses and Americans’ willingness to roll up their sleeves.

Biden’s announcements quickly raised expectations for when the nation could safely emerge from the pandemic with the promise of speedier vaccinations, but even as he expressed optimism, Biden quickly tempered the outlook for a return to life as it was before the virus hit.

“I’ve been cautioned not to give an answer to that because we don’t know for sure,” Biden said, before saying his hope for a return to normal was sometime before “this time next year.”

In hopes of increasing vaccinations even further, the Biden administration told governors to make preparations to administer even more doses in the coming weeks. More shots are also headed toward the federally backed program to administer doses in retail pharmacies, which federal officials believe can double or triple their pace of vaccination.

More than 800,000 doses of the J&J vaccine will also be distributed this week to pharmacies, on top of the 2.4 million they are now getting from Pfizer and Moderna.