Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said Wednesday that people may need multiple doses of a possible coronavirus vaccine to immunize against the coronavirus. If necessary, multiple doses may require the administration of more than 7 billion vaccines worldwide.
“None of the vaccines right now seems to work with a single dose,” said Gates. “That was the hope from the beginning.”
The billionaire philanthropist, who has donated $ 300 million to the global effort to combat COVID-19 through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, told “CBS Evening News” presenter and managing editor Norah O’Donnell to deploy a coronavirus vaccine will require a global effort. .
“If what you’re trying to do is block all transmission, then you need to get 70-80% coverage globally. So these are incredibly large numbers,” he said.
Gates, who has been warning about the threat of a global pandemic since 2015, admitted that “there will be a lot of uncertainty” about the efficacy of any vaccine, but emphasized that it is a solution “that will improve over time.”
The Moderna vaccine, which requires two doses per month, will begin a crucial step around July 27: a study of 30,000 people to test whether the vaccines are really strong enough to protect against the coronavirus.
When asked if the eventual vaccine would be safe, Gates said the FDA, as it stands, will be able to prevent an unsafe vaccine from being released.
“The FDA, without being pressured, will look at it carefully,” Gates said of the possible side effects. “The FDA is the regulators’ gold standard, and their current guidance on this, if they stick to it, is very appropriate.”
The United States reported more than 1,000 deaths from coronavirus on Wednesday for the first time since May. With 142,677 total deaths, the US has had the most deaths of any country, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. President Trump, however, said this week that the United States has the lowest death rate in the world.
Gates said the president’s statement is not objectively correct. “Not at all, not even close,” Gates said. “In almost all measures, the United States is one of the worst.”
“We open with the increase in cases,” Gates said. He also pointed to poor compliance with the mask, a buzz from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and a general lack of leadership as reasons why cases in the United States have not decreased.
“Serious mistakes were made,” he said.
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