U.S. Government Signs $450 Million COVID-19 Vaccine Contract With Johnson & Johnson

The Trump administration has made another move in the race to combat and stop the viral outbreak of COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, around the globe. The Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) recently signed a deal for a $456 million order with Johnson & Johnson’s Pharmaceuticals arm Janssen. The order has been specified as a “new vaccine asset for 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).” It is the largest amount spent on a vaccine project to date by the administration.

A spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson didn’t provide any more details on the specific order. The deal was in an announcement from ASPR’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) in February.

This moves the partnership forward between the U.S. government and Johnson & Johnson to co-invest $1 billion into COVID-19 vaccine research and clinical testing. Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceuticals hasn’t yet started any clinical trials for a vaccine but expects human clinical studies for its vaccine candidate to go ahead, at the latest, by September 2020. The company predicts the first round of vaccines to be available for emergency use in early 2021.

Johnson & Johnson also unveiled a new collaboration with the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in developing potential preventive vaccine candidates for COVID-19 earlier this month. A company spokesperson confirmed Johnson & Johnson still hopes to announce progress on the partnership very soon.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are only two active cases of vaccines going through trials —an NIAID-backed treatment with two others in China from CanSino Biological and the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology.

Despite the global rush to get a vaccine out as soon as possible, it is highly unlikely anything will be made available to market within the year. Healthcare professionals such as Dr. Richard Hatchett, CEO at CEPI, have stated it’ll take somewhere between a year and 18 months before the world has access to a coronavirus vaccine.

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Maxine Waters slams Trump in fiery tweets: ‘You incompetent idiot!’

Rep. Maxine Waters set Twitter ablaze on Monday with a series of fiery tweets aimed at President Donald Trump for what she called his “disaster” of a response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact in the United States.

“Trump, stop congratulating yourself! You’re a failure & you’ve mishandled this #COVID19 disaster!” Waters tweeted. 

READ MORE: ‘We love Yamiche’ trends on Twitter after Trump berates Black reporter’

“You’re not knowledgeable & you don’t know more than experts & generals. Your ignorance & incompetence are appalling & you continue to demonstrate that every time you open your mouth!”

Trump, stop congratulating yourself! You’re a failure & you’ve mishandled this #COVID19 disaster! You’re not knowledgeable & you don’t know more than experts & generals. Your ignorance & incompetence are appalling & you continue to demonstrate that every time you open your mouth!

— Maxine Waters (@RepMaxineWaters) March 30, 2020

“Trump, you incompetent idiot! You sent 18 tons of PPE to China early but ignored warnings & called COVID19 concerns a hoax. You’ve endangered doctors, nurses, aids, orderlies, & janitors – all risking their lives to save ours,” she said in another tweet.

“Pray 4 forgiveness for the harm that you’re causing!”

Trump, you incompetent idiot! You sent 18 tons of PPE to China early but ignored warnings & called COVID19 concerns a hoax. You’ve endangered doctors, nurses, aids, orderlies, & janitors – all risking their lives to save ours. Pray 4 forgiveness for the harm that you’re causing!

— Maxine Waters (@RepMaxineWaters) March 30, 2020

The California congresswoman’s impassioned tweets to the president were likely in response to Trump’s numerous false claims about the novel coronavirus and the U.S.’s response to it. What’s more, the U.S. has now surpassed China and Italy as the country with the most virus cases and continues to grabble with scarcity in medical supplies, among other national concerns.

Water’s tweets caused “Auntie Maxine” to trend on Twitter, drawing many responses from supporters cheering on her tough message.

House Financial Services Committee ranking member Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) arrives for a Democratic caucus meeting. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“Auntie Maxine wasnt having the BS today…,” tweeted @PricelessT1285.”

Songwriter Dianne Warren wrote, “Don’t f**k with Auntie Maxine!!”

READ MORE: Don Lemon accuses Trump of ‘gaslighting’ over coronavirus

Of course, Waters isn’t the only person to express their anger at Trump’s various falsehoods during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Trump had said that businesses would reopen by Easter, only to days later change course. Adhering to public health professionals, he ultimately extended nationwide social distancing guidelines through April 30, according to CNN.

READ MORE: Man dies after taking drug promoted by Trump to treat COVID-19

President Trump also pushed certain drugs as a potential treatment for COVID-19 — drugs that are now at the center of at least one death and thousands of lupus patients unable to get proper medication. Trump has also been repeatedly contradicted and corrected by Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Critics, like Waters, have slammed Trump for using his world microphone to lambast the press and Democratic opponents rather than addressing the concerns of the American public during a time of fear and uncertainty.

The post Maxine Waters slams Trump in fiery tweets: ‘You incompetent idiot!’ appeared first on TheGrio.

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