An optimistic forecast was posted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about coronavirus vaccines on Wednesday with a promise of some vaccines by the end of the year.
CDC said on a new page posted to its coronavirus website that at first there could be a limited supply, but it would increase after weeks and months of the initial release.
According to the CDC the goal is for everyone to be able to get COVID-19 vaccines easily as soon as large quantities of it are available. It also mentioned that the plan is to have several thousand vaccination providers available, so that no one will need to travel far to be vaccinated, whether it is at the retail pharmacy, doctor’s office, hospital, or federally qualified health center.
Though CDC does not play any role in vaccine development, it will help distribute vaccines. The National Institutes of Health is assisting in developing and testing vaccines, while the US Food and Drug Administration will give any emergency use authorization or approval.
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A vaccine might be widely available by April as mentioned by Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Fauci said that researchers should know by November or December if some vaccine trials have any safe candidate. Even if and whenever a safe candidate is determined, the initial quantities will most likely only be a few million doses.
The CDC page notes that if there is a limited supply, only some groups may be recommended to get a COVID-19 vaccine first.
The CDC also said that the federal government has committed to distributing coronavirus vaccines for free. Though providers may be allowed to charge an administrative fee and that should be covered by insurance.