US government orders 100 million doses of possible COVID-19 vaccine being developed in Connecticut

The Trump administration Wednesday announced it will pay Pfizer nearly $2 billion for a December delivery of 100 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine the Connecticut-based pharmaceutical company is developing.

News 12 Staff

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Jul 22, 2020, 1:12 PM

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Updated 1,465 days ago

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The Trump administration Wednesday announced it will pay Pfizer nearly $2 billion for a December delivery of 100 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine the Connecticut-based pharmaceutical company is developing.

Gov. Ned Lamont toured the Pfizer facility in Groton Wednesday and held a news conference to discuss the company's research.

"I am so proud that Pfizer is right here in Connecticut and taking the lead on finding a possible solution to this COVID crisis," says Lamont.

The company is days away from starting large-scale human trials, where up to 30,000 patients could receive the vaccine. The vaccine does not have FDA approval.

The company is days away from starting large-scale human trials, where up to 30,000 patients could receive the vaccine. The vaccine does not have FDA approval yet, but is apart of

It's a risk, but health experts want a massive supply ready to go by the end of this year.

"I would not wait to see if one was better than another," says Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Other Connecticut companies, like Protein Sciences in Meriden, are also working on a vaccine. Front line workers, like nurses, would probably get it first.

Lamont hopes it'll be widely available within months.

"We have a real opportunity by the end of this year, we'll be able to go to a CVS or your local pharmacy and get a COVID vaccine, just like you get a flu vaccine," he says.

If Pfizer's vaccine doesn't get FDA approval, the company doesn't get the $2 billion.

The company is also developing a treatment for people who already have COVID-19.

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