Covid-19 vaccine by end of 2020, says Trump as drug search intensifies

The European Union has pledged to set up an international medical program with an initial pledge of raising $8 billion to find a vaccine and treatment for the pandemic

US President Donald Trump on Sunday expressed confidence that a vaccine for coronavirus could be available by the end of this year. “I think we’ll have a vaccine by the end of the year. We’ll have a vaccine much sooner rather than later,” Trump said at a Fox News virtual town hall. The search for a vaccine for coronavirus infection has already intensified around the globe.The European Union has pledged to set up an international medical program with an initial pledge of raising $8 billion to find a vaccine and treatment for the pandemic.

In Britain, clinical trials have begun of a potential Covid-19 vaccine developed by scientists at Oxford University’s Jenner Institute. Other developers across Europe have also stepped up their works on their own experimental shots against the disease caused by the new coronavirus. Within the United States, at least 115 vaccine projects are going on in laboratories at companies and research labs, according to media reports.Earlier, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed that a vaccine against the coronavirus, when developed, should be universal and available for every individual across the world.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus LIVE: Italy reports lowest deaths since first day of lockdown