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“We are getting our scientists to develop vaccines under 'Operation Warp Speed'. We have 3 vaccines that will be available for production soon and they will be available this year,” Trump said at the Republican National Convention, adding, "We will have a safe and effective vaccine this year and together we will crush the virus."
Earlier, US President Donald Trump has said a vaccine for the novel coronavirus could be available before the November 3 presidential election, sooner than most experts anticipate. Trump, speaking to reporters as he departed the White House for a trip to a Whirlpool washing machine factory in Ohio, said a vaccine release around the time of the election "wouldn’t hurt," but the goal of the effort was to save lives.
Speed of COVID-19 vaccine race raises safety concerns
The frenetic race to develop a COVID-19 vaccine has intensified safety concerns about an inoculation, prompting governments and drugmakers to raise awareness to ensure their efforts to beat the coronavirus aren't derailed by public distrust.
There are more than 200 COVID-19 vaccine candidates in development globally, including more than 20 in human clinical trials. US President Donald Trump has vowed to have a shot ready before year's end, although they typically take 10 years or longer to develop and test for safety and effectiveness.
In the drive to find a potential COVID-19 vaccine "fast is good for politicians," said Heidi Larson, who leads the Vaccine Confidence Project (VCP), a global surveillance programme on vaccine trust. "But from the public perspective, the general sentiment is: 'too fast can't be safe'", she told Reuters.
Best Way to Reach Immunity is Through Vaccine: WHO
The majority of the world’s population is currently still susceptible to coronavirus which means the infection can go on and on and on, in waves. So the best way to achieve that kind of population immunity would be through a vaccine, said the World Health Organisation (WHO). Trying to reach herd immunity 'naturally' would be very dangerous as a lot of people will be infected which means more hospitalisations and more deaths. As societies open up, many are starting to see a resurgence of Covid-19 transmission. Much of this resurgence is occurring in clusters of cases related to gatherings of people, including at stadiums and nightclubs, said WHO.