Trump Announces Public-Private Partnership To Have COVID-19 Vaccine ‘By End Of The Year’

President Trump delivered another dose of optimism in the race to generate a COVID-19 vaccine on Friday when he announced a public-private partnership as part of what he called “Operation Warp Speed” to develop cure “by the end of the year.”

“This is an endeavor unlike anything our country has seen since the Manhattan Project … No one has seen anything like we’re doing now within our country since the second world war. Incredible,” Trump said in the White House Rose Garden.

“That means big and it means fast,” Trump continued. “It’s objective is to finish developing and then to manufacture and distribute a proven coronavirus vaccine … prior to the end of the year. I think we’re going to have some very good results coming out very quickly.”

Fox News profiled some of the key figures spearheading “Operation Warp Speed”:

The effort will be led by Moncef Slaoui, the former head of GlaxoSmithKline’s vaccines division, and Army Gen. Gustave Perna. Slaoui will oversee the vaccine development at Operation Warp Speed, while Serna will serve as the chief operating officer overseeing logistics.

The president announced Slauoi and Perna, calling them “two of the most highly-respected and skilled” officials.

Slaoui, a highly-respected vaccine developer, who is leading the effort, said he is “very confident” that they will “be able and do the utmost to deliver these objectives.”

Despite Trump’s optimism, the general consensus among scientists is that a COVID-19 vaccine may take up to a year to develop at best. In the event that we never develop it at all, a possible outcome, the lockdown measures may have delayed the U.S. population from achieving herd immunity. Nevertheless, the prevailing hope is that a vaccine will arise soon.

During his remarks on Friday, the president said that America will be on the road to recovery this year, adding that the country’s reopening strategy hinges on developing effective “treatments and vaccines as quickly as possible.”

“We’re going to have an amazing year next year and a great transition into the fourth quarter,” Trump said. “Very quickly. When I say quickly, we’re looking to get it by the end of the year if we can. Maybe before. We’re doing tremendously well.”

“I have very recently seen early data with a clinical trial for a coronavirus vaccine and this data made me even more confident..that we will be able to deliver a vaccine by the end of 2020,” he said. “We will do the best we can to do that.”

Trump added that the “the federal government is providing unprecedented support and resources to safely expedite the trials, moving on at record, record, record speed.”

“We’re getting ready so that when we get the good word that we have the vaccine, the formula, we have what we need, we’re ready to go,” Trump said.