Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Monday that he is "concerned" that a difficult transition from President Donald Trump’s administration to one headed by Joe Biden could hurt the rollout of a coronavirus vaccine.
On NBC's "Today" show on Monday, not long after Pfizer and Moderna announced promising results in trials for their coronavirus vaccines, Fauci said that the transition is "obviously" a concern.
"Obviously it's something that we're concerned about," the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said. "As you know I've served in six administrations, so I've seen a number of transitions, and I know that transitions are very important to get a smooth, as I use the metaphor, essentially passing a baton without stopping running. You just want things to go very smoothly so hopefully we'll see that soon. Transitions are important."
Fauci, who is a leading member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, added that Pfizer and Moderna could start distributing vaccine doses by the end of December for certain high-risk individuals.
"The virus is not going to stop and call a timeout while things change, the virus is just going to keep going," he said. "This is something that just is now going in a very, very strong right direction. The vaccines are effective, we want to get it approved as quickly as we possibly can, we want to get doses to people starting in December and then we want to really get the ball rolling as we get into January, February, and March."
Fauci said, "We want a smooth process with that, and the way you do that is by essentially having the two groups speak to each other and exchange information."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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