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The
vaccine, once hailed as another milestone in the fight against
the COVID-19 pandemic, has been dogged by questions since late
last year, even as it has been authorized for use by dozens of
countries, not including United States.
Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to the White
House, said the United States has enough contracts with other
vaccine makers to vaccinate its entire population, and possibly
enough for booster shots in the fall.
Asked whether the United States will use the AstraZeneca vaccine
doses, he said, "That's still up in the air. My general feeling
is that given the contractual relationships that we have with a
number of companies, that we have enough vaccine to fulfill all
of our needs without invoking AstraZeneca."
Late last year, the drugmaker and Oxford University published
data from an earlier trial with two different efficacy readings
as a result of a dosing error. Then in March, more than a dozen
countries temporarily suspended the use of AstraZeneca's vaccine
after reports linked it to a rare blood clotting disorder.
Also in March, a U.S. health agency said data from the company
gave an incomplete picture of its efficacy. Days later
AstraZeneca published results showing diminished, though still
strong, efficacy.
Fauci said that "If you look at the numbers (of doses) that
we're going to be getting, the amount that you can get from J&J,
from Novavax from Moderna if we contract for more, it is likely
that we can handle any boost that we need, but I can't say
definitely for sure."
(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; editing by Peter Henderson and
Aurora Ellis)
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