After promises of a COVID-19 vaccine, the director for the Center for Disease Control told the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday a vaccine will likely not be available to the masses until next year.
“I might even go so far as to say that this face mask is more guaranteed to protect me against COVID than when I take a COVID vaccine,” CDC Director Robert Redfield said.
Redfield said that high-risk Americans might receive the vaccine as early as November.
Doctor Cindy Prins is an assistant professor of Epidemiology at the University of Florida. She said that a COVID-19 vaccine for the masses will likely be distributed in the middle of next year.
“Continue wearing that mask. I think that wearing that mask is one of the best ways to prevent COVID-19,” said Dr. Prins. “The scientists usually have a realistic point of view of when a vaccine is going to come out. You know, politicians, they want to be hopeful and they want to give hope.”
President Trump contradicted the CDC director on Wednesday when he said 100 million at-risk Americans will receive the vaccine by the end of the year.
“I think he made a mistake when he said that. It’s just incorrect information. I called him and he didn’t tell me that. I think he got the message confused,” President Trump told reporters when asked about Redfield’s remarks.
Later Thursday night, Redfield doubled down on his Twitter account. The health official once again said wearing a mask and staying away from large crowds is the most effective thing for Americans to do in order to stop the spread of COVID-19.