Trump takes vaccine victory lap, boosting the drug’s acceptance
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is taking a victory lap ahead of the expected approval of the first U.S. vaccine for the coronavirus, as the White House works to instill confidence in the distribution that will largely be executed by Presidentelect Joe Biden
Trump scheduled an event celebrating “Operation Warp
Speed,” his administration’s effort to produce and distribute safe and effective vaccines for COVID-19. The first, from drugmaker Pfizer, is expected to receive endorsement by a panel of Food and Drug Administration advisers as soon as this week, with delivery of 100 million doses — enough for 50 million Americans — expected in coming months.
Trump and his aides hope the event will tamp down skepticism among some Americans about the vaccine and help build the Republican president’s legacy.
The “Operation Warp Speed” summit will feature Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and a host of government experts, state leaders and business executives, as the White House looks to explain that the vaccine is safe and lay out the administration’s plans. But officials from Biden’s transition team, which will oversee the bulk of the largest vaccination program in the nation’s history once he takes office Jan. 20, were not invited.
Officials from the pharmaceutical companies developing the vaccines were not expected to attend despite receiving invitations, according to people familiar with the matter. Outside the White House, there has been concern about the event contributing to the politicization of the vaccine development process and potentially further inhibiting public confidence in the drugs.
Trump’s administration was facing new scrutiny Tuesday after failing to lock in a chance to buy millions of additional doses of Pfizer’s vaccine, which has shown to be highly effective against COVID-19. That decision could delay the delivery of a second batch of doses until Pfizer fulfills other contracts.
Under its contract with Pfizer, the Trump administration committed to buy an initial 100 million doses, with an option to buy as much as five times more.
But this summer, the White House opted not to lock in an additional 100 million doses for delivery in the second quarter of 2021, according to people who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.
Dr. Moncef Slaoui, who is leading the government’s vaccine effort, noted the Trump administration had been looking at a number of different vaccines during the summer. He told ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Tuesday that “no one reasonably would buy more from any one of those vaccines because we didn’t know which one would work and which one would be better than the other.”
Concerns about the availability of the vaccines come as Trump is to sign an executive order Tuesday to prioritize Americans for coronavirus vaccines procured by the federal government. A senior administration official said the order would restrict the government from delivering doses to other nations until there is excess supply to meet domestic demand, but it was not immediately clear what the practical impact would be.
The Trump administration insists that between the Pfizer vaccine, another vaccine from drugmaker Moderna and others in the pipeline, the U.S. will be able to accommodate any American who wants to be vaccinated by the end of the second quarter of 2021.