President Trump, 13th November 2020,
''In the past nine months, my administration has initiated the single greatest mobilization in U.S. history — pioneering, developing, and manufacturing therapies and vaccines in record time.''
''And we’re very proud of it, and I had tremendous help from the military — generals, admirals — and many of the great people at the White House.''
''Operation Warp Speed is unequaled and unrivaled anywhere in the world,''
''As a result of Operation Warp Speed, Pfizer announced on Monday that its China virus vaccine is more than 90 percent effective.''
''In July, my administration reached an agreement with Pfizer to provide $1.95 billion to support the mass manufacturing and distribution of 100 million doses, with the option to purchase a total of 600 million doses shortly thereafter. Our investment will make it possible for the vaccine to be provided by Pfizer free of charge.
Pfizer said it wasn’t part of Warp Speed, but that turned out to be a unfortunate misrepresentation. They are part. That’s why we gave them the $1.95 million — billion dollars. And it was an unfortunate mistake that they made when they said that.
''We will work to secure an emergency use authorization, which should be coming down extremely soon. And my administration will then coordinate the distribution of the vaccine, and it will be approved, I think — again, it will be approved very, very quickly, we hope.''
''The average development timeline for the vaccine, including clinical tests and manufacturing, can take 8 to 12 years. Through Operation Warp Speed, we’re doing it in less than one year. If you had a different administration with different people, what we’ve done would have taken, in my opinion, three, four, five years, and it would have been in the FDA forever.''
''We know that this virus primarily targets older populations and those with underlying health conditions. Well, over 99.98 percent of those under the age of 50 make a full and quick recovery. By giving the vaccine to high-risk individuals right away, we will dramatically reduce hospitalizations and deaths.''
''Again, this process is starting right away. Millions of doses will soon be going out the door. They’re all ready, waiting for that final approval. As soon as April, the vaccine will be available to the entire general population, with the exception of places like New York state, where, for political reasons, the governor decided, they say — and, you know, I don’t think it’s good, politically; I think it’s very bad from a health standpoint — but he wants to take his time with the vaccine. He doesn’t trust where the vaccine is coming from.''
''These [vaccines] are coming from the greatest companies anywhere in the world, greatest labs in the world. ''
''This is a very successful, amazing vaccine at 90 percent and more.''
''And again, it’s a very safe and a great vaccine.''
''As far as therapeutics are concerned, my administration has also made critical investments in therapies that have helped reduce the mortality rate by 85 percent. That’s, to me, one of the most exciting things. It’s incredible, some of the antibody vaccines and others that have come out and have really helped people — 85 percent.''Last month, the FDA approved remdesivir, and we’ve secured enough remdesivir to treat 850,000 patients.
''My administration finalized an agreement with Eli Lilly to purchase the first doses of their antibody therapy, which shows amazing results.''
''' We expect to issue emergency use authorizations for a number of additional treatments in the near future. ''
''Ideally, we won’t go to a lockdown. I will not go — this administration will not be going to a lockdown. Hopefully, the — the — whatever happens in the future — who knows which administration it will be? I guess time will tell. But I can tell you, this administration will not go to a lockdown. There won’t be necessity. Lockdowns cost lives, and they cost a lot of problems.''
''The cure cannot be — you got to remember — cannot be worse than the problem itself, and I’ve said it many times. ''
US Secretary of Health, Alex Azar,
''This process has been driven solely by science and data. So it’s a shame that some — one example being the Governor of New York — have actually injected politics into the process and suggested the possibility of intentionally delaying access to an FDA-authorized vaccine, which is simply unconscionable.''
''Thank you, Mr. President, for making that very bright future possible for the American people.''
THE PRESIDENT: ''Appreciate it. Thank you.''
Mike Pence, please.
THE VICE PRESIDENT:
''It was your vision that we could harness the ingenuity and the creativity of America’s greatest pharmaceutical and research companies to speed, in record time, a vaccine that would save American lives.
You told the American people that we would have a vaccine before the end of the year, and some scoffed at that timetable. But I can tell you, the team on Operation Warp Speed didn’t; these great research companies didn’t.''