J&J announces $ 1 billion agreement with US government for COVID vaccine 19. Human testing begins in September
Johnson & Johnson has announced that it will begin testing an experimental vaccine on humans by early September, and if the results are good it could be available for emergency clearance early next year, CNBC reports .
The company also announced it will invest $ 1 billion with the US Government to fund vaccine research.
Under the agreement, US authorities will pay $ 421 million to support J&J’s efforts to build a new production facility in the US.
The experimental vaccine developed by J&J will enter into phase 1 human testing by September, according to the company, and data on its effects would be available by the end of the year. If the vaccine is successful, the company said it could be available in early 2021.
Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
Johnson & Johnson has announced that it will increase production capacity with a new unit in the US, but will also make changes to its units in other countries, to rapidly produce and distribute the potential vaccine. The company has announced it plans to produce over 1 billion doses of a potential vaccine.
“We have very good signs from the beginning that this will not only be a harmless vaccine, but also one that will ultimately be effective based on past research,” said Alex Gorsky, Chairman of the Board and CEO Johnson & Johnson, for CNBC.
Gorsky added that Johnson & Johnson does not pursue the production of the vaccine for financial reasons, but declined to say what the price might be.
In addition to the main experimental vaccine, the company announced that it has two backup variants and has been working on developing a vaccine since January.
Several countries are working on developing a coronavirus vaccine that killed more than 34,000 people worldwide, but experts warned that producing a vaccine could take more than a year. The Modern company has already started testing its vaccine on humans at the beginning of the month, this being the first test of its kind. According to WHO, another vaccine produced by Chinese company CanSino Biological has entered phase 1 testing.