The US government has ordered 300 million doses of a potential COVID-19 vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University and hopes first doses can be made available by October, the Department of Health and Human Services said Thursday.
"This contract with AstraZeneca is a major milestone in Operation Warp Speed’s work toward a safe, effective, widely available vaccine by 2021," HHS Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement.
The US has the world's worst coronavirus affliction, with over 1.52 million cases, including 91,664 deaths, according to data from its Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as of May 20.
-reuters-
