The supply of COVID-19 vaccine in the United States is expected to increase to a combined total of 240 million doses by the end of March, which would be enough to vaccinate about 130 million people, company executives from Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson confirmed in prepared statements to be delivered to Congress on Tuesday (February 23.)
Pfizer is expected to produce more than 13 million doses of its two-shot vaccine weekly in the U.S. by mid-March, which would double its weekly number of doses distributed total from earlier this month, Chief Business Officer John Young said in written testimony shared on the U.S. House of Representatives website. The testimony was made public prior to Tuesday's hearing before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Young also said Pfizer is on pace to distribute 120 million doses by the end of March, as well as an additional 80 million doses expected to be sent out by the end of May.
Moderna is also expected to double its vaccine shipments by April, which includes 40 million doses distributed per month, roughly double its current pace, according to the prepared testimony of President Dr. Stephen Hoge shared on the House website.
“Since the end of 2020, we have doubled our monthly deliveries to the U.S. government, and we are working to double them again by April to more than 40 million doses per month,” Hoge said. “As we work to meet these goals, we are continually learning and working closely with our partners and the federal government to identify ways to address bottlenecks and accelerate our production.”
Hoge also said if the Food and Drug Administration authorizes Moderna to add more doses of vaccine to each vial, it "would improve output" even more.
Johnson & Johnson, which has a one-shot vaccine set to be reviewed by the FDA on Thursday, is also expected to boost the supply of COVID-19 vaccine distribution next month. Vice President of Medical Affairs Dr. Richard Nettles said in his prepared testimony that J&J intents to distribute more than 20 million doses of its vaccine by the end of March and that the company is confident it can provide 100 million doses during the first half of 2021.
The combined total of 240 million doses would be a huge increase from the current supply, with around 75.2 million doses having been delivered to states and just over 64.1 million doses of the vaccine distributed to the public, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The House hearings are scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. EST on Tuesday.
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