The U.S. still expects to reach its target for the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, despite Johnson and Johnson struggling with production, a senior White House aide said Monday.
Andy Slavitt, a senior adviser to President Biden’s coronavirus response team, said the drugmaker was still on track to deliver 24 million doses in April.
“Even without additional doses from Johnson & Johnson, you can expect us to be somewhere in the area,” Slavitt told a news conference.
“You do math. There is enough stock to vaccinate Americans at 3 million a day, and then some. This is due to the fact that there are many doses that have already been distributed in states. ”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said vaccine delivery would drop by more than 80 percent this week, though the cause is unclear.
Some government officials blamed a contract plant in Baltimore, where at least 15 million shots were contaminated when employees allegedly mixed ingredients with another shot.
But in any case, the factory has not yet been authorized to deliver doses and is currently awaiting approval from US regulators.
“We are delighted that Johnson and Johnson have since taken control of the plant, eliminating the confusing factor of another vaccine being produced there,” Slavitt said.
“And they remain confident that they will be able to deliver at or near 24 million and at or near 100 million by May this month.”