FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn says U.S. might have to wait until next year for coronavirus vaccine

The U.S. may not see a coronavirus vaccine finish development until next year, FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said Thursday morning as an increasing number of Americans say they would get the shot.

‘We are on target to reach a vaccine by years end or early next year,’ Hahn, who also is part of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, told Good Morning America. ‘So, I’m cautiously optimistic.’

Hahn did not specify if he was referencing when the vaccine would be finished development and approved by the Food and Drug Administration, which must ensure the safety of all vaccines, or if he was talking about a timeline for when it would likely get through all the red tape and be available to the American people.

Last month seven in 10 Americans said in a Washington Post/ABC News poll that they would get a coronavirus vaccine if it became available, and were affordable and accessible for all.

At least 27 per cent of respondents in that poll claimed they would probably or definitely not get vaccinated.

‘We are on target to reach a vaccine by years end or early next year,’ Hahn, who also is part of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, told Good Morning America. ‘So, I’m cautiously optimistic’

Hahn says the FDA has four vaccines in clinical trials as a poll last month found a bit more than seven in 10 Americans would get the shot if a vaccination hit the market

The National Institute of Health’s leading immunologist Dr. Anthony Fauci said if even just 25 per cent of people do not get vaccinated, the U.S. will fail to accomplish ‘herd immunity’

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading immunologist at the National Institute of Health and a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said if even just 25 per cent of Americans did not receive the vaccine, it would be unsuccessful in achieving ‘herd immunity.’

‘That’s one of the reasons why we have to make sure we engage the community as we’re doing now, to get community people to help us, for people to understand that we are doing everything we can to show that it’s safe and that it’s effective and that it’s for the good of them as individuals and in society to take the vaccine,’ Fauci said in an interview Monday.

He also claimed he would ‘settle’ for a vaccine that were 70-75 per cent effective, claiming if everyone got that hypothetical shot it ‘would bring you to that level that would be herd immunity level.’

Earlier polls taken in May suggested that only 50-55 per cent of Americans would be OK with receiving a vaccination for COVID-19.

Hahn said the FDA has given authorization for four different vaccines to begin clinical trial and he claims he expects two of those vaccines to go into the late stages of larger clinical trials later this month.

After a small decline, the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the U.S. began to skyrocket and state’s began letting up on lockdown orders and reopening normal operations

He also said there are ‘robust therapies for coronavirus’ as the FDA supervises 141 different clinical trials related to the virus.

President Donald Trump established a goal for millions of doses of a coronavirus vaccine to be available by the end of the year – even though many scientists say the time frame is unrealistic.

Trump finally conceded in an interview that aired Wednesday that he would wear a mask if he were in a crowded room, claiming he likes the way he looks in the face coverings.

Hahn urged during his interview that people to wear masks when they cannot socially distance.