Trump expects coronavirus vaccine to be available for 'every American' by April

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump said on Friday that the United States would produce enough coronavirus vaccine doses for "every American" by April 2021.

The president told a White House news conference that the country will have at least 100 million doses of vaccine by the end of the year, or "likely much more than that."

"Hundreds of millions of doses will be available every month and we expect to have enough vaccines for every American by April and again I'll say even at that later stage, the delivery will go as fast as it comes," Trump said.

The president's comment came days after he claimed that the United States could start distributing a coronavirus vaccine as early as October.

"We're very close to that vaccine as you know and I think closer than most people want to say," Trump said during a White House press briefing on Wednesday. "We think we can start sometime in October. So as soon as it's announced we'll be able to start. That will be from mid-October on. It may be a little bit later than that."

Earlier on Wednesday, however, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield told lawmakers during a Senate hearing that he expected vaccinations to begin in November or December, but in limited quantities to ensure that those most in need, such as healthcare workers, will get the first doses.

Redfield said it will be the late second quarter or third quarter of 2021 before a COVID-19 vaccine is generally available to the American public.