President Donald Trump has on Sunday predicted that the United States will have a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year.
Trump in a Fox News “town hall” show broadcast from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC stated;
We are very confident that we’re going to have a vaccine at the end of the year, by the end of the year.
He also expressed that he would urge the reopening of schools and universities in September, saying “I want them to go back.”
Contrary to the usual American ideology of being first at every race, Trump expressed that he would be happy for another country who beats US researchers to the production of a vaccine, saying;
If it’s another country I’ll take my hat off. I don’t care, I just want to get a vaccine that works.
Also, when asked about risks involved during human trials in a research process, Trump said “they’re volunteers. They know what they’re getting into.”
The president said he wasn’t worried about people volunteering for vaccine trials.
The president said he’d like to see therapeutics, too, that would work to cure patients who have COVID-19.
He stated;
I would rather have therapeutics, something to make people better, not a cure, at least a therapeutic.
Trump added that the U.S. was working alongside Australia and also the United Kingdom towards the quick production of Coronavirus vaccine.
Most recently, the U.S Federal Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the use of a anti-viral drug Remdesivir for COVID-19 cases.
The antiviral drug which was originally produced by Gilead Sciences to treat Ebola virus, has proved effective in speeding up recovery rate of infected persons.
According to Gilead Sciences study, 397 patients with severe infections were given the drug over five and 10-day courses and they found that more than half were discharged from hospital within 14 days.
Scientists hope the anti-viral drug remains effective in fighting the virus in infected persons, while observation goes on.
