There will be enough Covid vaccines for the ‘entire U.S. adult population by June,’ Johnson & Johnson board member says
Emily DeCiccio - JAN 29 20218:24 PM EST
cnbc.com
KEY POINTS
The United States has ordered 100 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which the company plans to deliver by June.“Assuming all of the close review of the J&J data all pans out, we’re going to have the capacity between Moderna, Pfizer, J&J, to have enough vaccines available by June for the entire U.S. adult population,” said McClellan.J&J’s vaccine was found to be 66% effective overall in preventing moderate to severe Covid. Johnson & Johnson board member Dr. Mark McClellan told CNBC
Friday that there could be enough vaccinations for the entire U.S.
adult population by the summer.
“Assuming all of the close review of the J&J data all pans out, we’re
going to have the capacity between Moderna, Pfizer, J&J, to have
enough vaccines available by June for the entire U.S. adult population,”
McClellan, a former FDA commissioner, said on “The News with
Shepard Smith.”
The U.S. plans to buy 200 million Covid vaccine doses from Moderna
and Pfizer. The Department of Health and Human Services will boost
its vaccine supply to states from 8.6 million to a minimum of 10 million
doses per week. So far, states have received more than 49 million
doses, but only about half of those have actually ended up in people’s
arms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The agency reports that the U.S. is administering a little more than a
million shots every day.
McClellan that the U.S. should significantly increase the amount
of shots administered per day and “get our capacity for doing
vaccinations up closer to 3 million doses per day.”
The United States has ordered 100 million doses of the J&J vaccine,
which the company plans to deliver by June. J&J plans to file for
emergency use authorization next week. If J&J’s vaccine is authorized
by the FDA, it would be the third vaccine approved for emergency use
in the U.S. Pfizer’s vaccine was authorized by the FDAon Dec. 11, and
Moderna’s was authorized a week later.
The J&J vaccine efficacy numbers were lower than those for Pfizer and
Moderna. Pfizer’s vaccine was found to be 95% effective against pre-
venting Covid-19, while Moderna’s was found to be about 94% effective.
J&J’s vaccine was found to be 66% effective overall in preventing mod-
erate to severe Covid.
Host Shepard Smith asked McClellan about the lower efficacy numbers
compared to Pfizer and Moderna, and he explained to Smith that “we’re
fighting a different virus today than we were three months ago when
previous trials were done.”
Additionally, J&J ran its trial across three continents and the level of
protection varied by region. Its vaccine demonstrated overall, 72%
effectiveness in the United States and 66% in Latin America. In South
Africa, where the dangerous B.1.351 strain of Covid caused a surge
in cases, the J&J vaccine demonstrated 57% effectiveness.
“Unfortunately, we’re probably going to be fighting a different virus three
months from now, so most important in winning this battle, is getting as
many people vaccinated as possible,” said McClellan. “The faster we get
shots in arms, the more people we get vaccinated here in this country
and around the world, the better we’re going to do in containing that further
spread and the further damage from Covid.” |
