The Biden administration on Tuesday announced a $1.4 billion investment in developing the so-called next generation of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments.
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Dawn O’Connell made the announcement, saying the funding is part of the $5 billion program they hope will help the country get ahead of any future changes in COVID-19.
“This is an investment in expanding our country’s ability to respond to the future variants that we might see coming out of COVID,” Becerra said. “It’s an investment in better protecting all of our community, including those who are immunocompromised, and who don’t respond well to the existing vaccines.”
The $1.4 billion in funding should allow clinical trials for a new monoclonal antibody to start this autumn with clinical trials for a new COVID-19 vaccine starting as soon as the winter, O’Connell said.
“Project NextGen is operationalizing the lessons we’ve learned about the COVID-19 virus to broaden the nation’s medicine cabinet and increase protection for all communities,” O’Connell said.
The Biden administration, she said, expects to announce additional funding for Project NextGen programs before the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30.