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A group of federal officials, scientists, and drug companies are tasked with the challenge of developing a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year.
President Donald Trump discussed details of the initiative, called "Operation Warp Speed," during a press briefing Friday afternoon. The team includes leaders from the CDC, FDA, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Defense.
"Its objective is to finish developing and then to manufacture and distribute a proven coronavirus vaccine as fast as possible," Trump said. "We'd love to see if we can do it prior to the end of the year."
Trump named the two leaders for the operation: Moncef Slaoui, an immunologist who previously ran GlaxoSmithKline's vaccine division, and U.S. Army Gen. Gustave Perna, commander of the Material Command that runs logistics and supply chains.
The NIH began working on a vaccine after the SARS-CoV-2 genetic code was released publicly in January and started the first phase of a clinical trial in March. Scientists across the world have identified about 100 potential vaccine candidates and are focusing on 14 that seem the "most promising," Trump said.
