Moderna's news that its COVID-19 vaccine had tested at 94.5% effectiveness is cause for celebration, particularly when combined with Pfizer's announcement about its vaccine, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Monday.
"The president said back in March he hoped to have a vaccine in 12 months and Tony Fauci interrupted him and said well maybe 18 if we're optimistic," said on ABC News' "Good Morning America." "Here we are 10 months from when (COVID) hit our shore and we have got a second 90% effective vaccine for the American people. This is really a historic day."
Moderna Inc. said its results are based on interim data from a late-stage clinical trial. Between the two vaccines, the United States could have as many as 60 million doses of vaccine available by the year's end, and by next year, it could have 1 billion doses or more than would be needed for the country's 330 million residents.
Azar said the vaccine is all set to go through private distribution channels, such as pharmaceutical giants CVS and Walgreens, and added that work is also continuing with the nation's governors.
The secretary, also appearing on Fox News' "Fox and Friends," pointed out that President Donald Trump partnered with Moderna last January at the labs at the National Institutes of Health concerning the vaccine.
"Thanks to President Trump's vision, we have been making both of those and four other vaccines at commercial-scale production," said Azar. "We believe we will have enough for 20 million Americans to get vaccinated in December."
Meanwhile, Moderna's vaccine is more flexible, as it can be kept under regular refrigeration while Pfizer's must be kept at 70 degrees below zero, said Azar. He said it's most likely Moderna's vaccine will be the one that goes to local pharmacies, while Pfizerss would go to bigger institutions, for that reason.
Azar also on Monday told Fox News that it is "ridiculous" to call for school closures, as that is not driven by science or experience.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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