Johnson and Johnson slashes outlook, races to develop coronavirus vaccine
The company is aiming to have its single-dose vaccine candidate available for broad use early in 2021, and also is testing two backup vaccine candidates. J&J has a good track record on vaccines, developing ones for HIV, Ebola and the Zika virus over the last decade.
« The vaccine is our biggest focus, » Chief Financial Officer Joe Wolk said in an interview.
The company is aiming to have 600 million to 800 million doses available in the first half of next year alone.
Meanwhile, J&J is also screening its « library » of drug compounds, and those of other companies, looking for potential treatments for the virus.