Johnson & Johnson hopes to have enough COVID-19 vaccines for 100 million Americans by April, as the FBI ramps up national vaccination efforts, a company official said.
According to Dr. J&J board member and former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration.
“I know J&J is supplying a very large supply … with the goal of having maybe enough vaccines for 100 million Americans by spring, around April or so,” McClellan told CNBC Thursday night. “That will make a big difference in the availability of stock in the coming weeks and months if the trial is successful.”
J&J expects to release data from the Phase 3 study of the single-dose coronavirus vaccine by the end of this month, which has been shown to generate an immune response to COVID-19 at an early stage.
The company will then apply for an emergency use license with the FDA, which will allow it to be administered nationwide like the existing Pfizer and Moderna shots.
But the pharmaceutical company has reportedly been struggling with manufacturing problems that left it behind on its goal of making 12 million doses available by the end of February. J&J has nevertheless said it is “confident” that it will be able to meet its delivery obligations this year.
While vaccine supplies will increase overall, it will be difficult to “keep up with the large number of Americans who really want to get vaccinated now,” McClellan said.
According to federal data, less than half of the roughly 38 million doses distributed so far have ended up in the arms of Americans, and officials in places like New York City have warned of shortages.
President Biden’s government “has set a goal of one million doses per day,” McClellan told CNBC. “We’ve been at that level for the past few days and I think people will expect a higher level of vaccine distribution and administration.”