The Baltimore plant is the second of four planned locations around the world where Johnson & Johnson plans to pump out vaccine on a massive scale, months before testing the first dose in a human being. BARDA, tasked with protecting Americans from biological threats, is channeling nearly half a billion dollars in emergency funds to Johnson & Johnson to develop a vaccine. That forces companies to scale up to produce millions of doses of vaccine that might end up being worthless. A Trump administration official said this month that the United States supports such efforts despite skipping the pledge event. Stoffels said Johnson & Johnson is committed to satisfying demand wherever it is most needed.

Source: Washington Post May 11, 2020 20:18 UTC