AstraZeneca's COVID-19 Vaccine Could Be Available by End of 2020, CEO Says
A general view of AstraZeneca is seen during Prime Minister Scott Morrison's visit on August 19, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. The Australian government has announced an agreement with the British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca to secure at least 25 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine if it passes clinical trials. The University of Oxford COVID-19 vaccine is currently in phase-three testing. If the vaccine proves to be successful, Australia will manufacture and supply vaccines and will be made available for free. The project could deliver the first vaccines by the end of this year or by early 2021. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

AstraZeneca's long-awaited COVID-19 vaccine may be available by the end of 2020, said the drugmaker's CEO.

AstraZeneca Chief Executive Officer Pascal Soriot dismissed reports of delays and production snags for their COVID-19 vaccine.

The company is targeting to unveil the vaccine test results by year-end despite slight delays over the summer.

AstraZeneca is working with the University of Oxford in developing one of the highly anticipated vaccines with trials in the U.S., the U.K., and other countries.

In a CBS News report, AstraZeneca said it would analyze data from its November-December late-stage trials.

If the results point to promising outcomes, they will move quickly to seek government approval and ramp up manufacturing, particularly in the U.S.

The results are still needed so regulators could approve the vaccine for widespread use.

The Hill said tens of thousands of participants took part in the late-stage trials, and results are likely to come in the next few weeks.

As studies continue, researchers are keeping the COVID-19 vaccines in a frozen bulk state as test results are still pending. Storing the shot this way will preserve the shelf life of the medication.

"At the end of the day, we don't yet know if the vaccine works," Soriot told Bloomberg.

Soriot said they are hoping to start large-scale vaccinations by January 2021 or "possibly even December."

He also said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) might have to wait for the trial results in the country, which was halted in September.

If the FDA finds that the vaccine is safe and effective, AstraZeneca can guarantee millions of doses on a "rolling basis."

Last month, the company said their vaccine had shown evidence of immune response in older adults and the elderly.

Public Health Officials Doubt 2020 Early Vaccinations

Public health officials, as they have said before, believe that the timeline with a 2020 end date is unlikely.

While the read-out of late-stage trial data can occur before the end of the year, making the vaccine widely available may be possible until several months into 2021.

AstraZeneca said it would sell the vaccine during the pandemic for a price of about $4 to $5, depending on local manufacturing charges.

But the British drugmaker recently said it might add as much as 20 percent to cover manufacturing costs and other additional expenses.

According to Soriot, the company is incurring a bill exceeding $1 billion globally for expenses that include drug and clinical development.

The company reported Thursday a third-quarter profit that did not meet estimates done by analysts. Disruptions occurred due to the inflated costs and discouragement that doctors faced in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some other drugmakers also reported the same kinds of disruptions.

"Believe it or not, people are having heart attacks and they don't go to the hospital because they are scared," Soriot said.

There were minimal changes in AstraZeneca's shares in London trading, according to Bloomberg.

Other COVID-19 vaccine makers to watch for are Pfizer and Moderna, which are also waiting for crucial test results in the coming weeks.