LOOK, IT MADE -- >> Neil: I DON’T MEAN TO
INTERRUPT YOU BUT YOU’LL INDULGE
ME, THE PRESIDENT IS SPEAKING ON
THIS ISSUE.
THIS ISSUE. LET’S LISTEN IN.
>> REAL EXPERT IF HER FIELD.
YOU’D CAN ASK HER A COUPLE
QUESTIONS WHEN WE’RE FINISHED.
WE’RE WORKING VERY HARD TO
EXPEDITE THE LONGER PROCESS OF
DEVELOPING A VACCINE.
WE’RE ALSO MOVING WITH MAXIMUM
SPEED TO DEVELOP THERAPIES SO
THAT WE CAN HELP PEOPLE RECOVER
AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
WE HAVE A LOT OF RECOVERY GOING
ON.
ON. WE WANT TO SEE IF WE CAN ADVANCE
THAT.
THAT. LIKELY THERAPIES WILL BE
AVAILABLE BEFORE A VACCINE IS
READY AND WE’LL SEE TO BRING ALL
EFFECTIVE TREATMENTS TO MARKET
AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
VERY GOOD WORK HAAS BEEN DONE ON
THE VACCINE.
THE VACCINE. THEY HAVE SOME GOOD PROGRESS AND
YOU’LL BE ABLE TO ASK A COUPLE
OF QUESTIONS OF THE FOLKS HERE.
WE’RE ALSO WORKING WITH CONGRESS
TO ENSURE THAT AMERICA HAS WHAT
IT NEEDS TO RESPOND TO THIS
CHALLENGE.
CHALLENGE. GREAT CHALLENGE.
GREAT CHALLENGE. EVERYBODY IS RESPONDING VERY
WELL.
WELL. SINCE THE START OF THE OUTBREAK,
MY ADMINISTRATION HAS TAKEN THE
MOST AGGRESSIVE ACTION IN
HISTORY TO PROTECT OUR CITIZENS
INCLUDING CLOSING OUR BORDERS
VERY EARLY, A LOT EARLIER THAN
PEOPLE WANTED US TO DO.
THAT TURNED OUT TO BE A GOOD
DECISION.
DECISION. I ORDERED SWEEPING TRAVEL
RESTRICTIONS, INCREASED TRAVEL
ADVISORY LEVELS, ESTABLISHED
SCREENING MEASURES AND IMPOSED
HISTORIC QUARANTINES.
HISTORIC QUARANTINES. WE HAVE QUARANTINES ALL OVER THE
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. A LOT OF THE CORONAVIRUS SHOWS
THE IMPORTANCE OF BRINGING
MANUFACTURING BACK TO AMERICA SO
WE ARE PRODUCING AT HOME THE
MEDICINES AND EQUIPMENT AND
EVERYTHING ELSE THAT WE NEED TO
PROTECT THE PUBLIC’S HEALTH.
I’VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THIS FOR
A LONG TIME.
THAT PROCESS STARTED AND STARTED
LONG BEFORE WE KNEW ABOUT THIS.
WE WANT TO MAKE CERTAIN THINGS
AT HOME.
AT HOME. WE WANT TO BE DOING OUR
MANUFACTURING AT HOME.
IT’S NOT ONLY DONE IN CHINA,
IT’S DONE IN MANY OTHER PLACES
INCLUDING IRELAND AND A LOT OF
PLACES MAKE OUR DIFFERENT DRUGS
AND THINGS THAT WE NEED SO
BADLY.
BADLY. IT’S NOT GOOD TO BE DEALING WITH
ONE OR TWO OR THREE COUNTRIES.
WE DO VERY LITTLE AT HOME AND
WE’RE GOING TO START DOING IT AT
HOME.
HOME. WE’VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THAT
FOR A LONG TIME.
A LOT OF THE DRUG COMPANIES
BECAUSE OF WHAT WE’VE DONE IN
TERMS OF INCENTIVES AND TAXES,
THEY’RE HEADING BACK HERE
ANYWAY.
ANYWAY. THE CORONAVIRUS SHOWS THE
IMPORTANCE OF BRINGING ALL OF
THAT MANUFACTURING BACK TO
AMERICA AND WE WILL HAVE THAT
STARTED.
STARTED. IT’S ALREADY STARTED, FRANKLY.
STARTED ABOUT A YEAR AGO.
THE WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK
FORCE LED BY VICE PRESIDENT MIKE
PENCE HAS BEEN MEETING DAILY AND
COORDINATING CLOSELY WITH THE
STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.
MIKE HAD A CALL WITH 53
GOVERNORS.
GOVERNORS. I HEARD IT WAS A VERY GOOD CALL.
EVERYBODY IS VERY
WELL-COORDINATED.
WELL-COORDINATED. THE GOVERNORS AND THE STATES,
ALL OF THEM, I CAN’T THINK OF AN
EXCEPTION, THEY’VE BEEN WORKING
CLOSELY WITH US.
IT’S IN A VERY GOOD
RELATIONSHIP.
RELATIONSHIP. WE WILL CONFRONT THIS CHALLENGE
TOGETHER.
TOGETHER. WE WILL CONTINUE TO DO EXACTLY
WHAT WE’RE DOING.
WE’RE GOING TO BE VERY
SUCCESSFUL.
SUCCESSFUL. A LOT OF THINGS ARE HAPPENING, A
LOT OF VERY EXCITING THINGS ARE
HAPPENING AND HAPPENING RAPIDLY.
WITH THAT, I’D LIKE TO INTRODUCE
MIKE.
MIKE. YOU CAN SAY A LITTLE BIT AS TO
YOUR CALLS AND THE THINGS
HAPPENING TODAY.
HAPPENING TODAY. >> THANK YOU, MR. PRESIDENT.
THE WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS TASK
FORCE WILL BE MEETING A AGAIN
THIS AFTERNOON.
THIS AFTERNOON. AS YOU MENTIONED EARLIER TODAY
AT YOUR DIRECTION, WE HOSTED A
VIDEO AND TELEPHONE CONFERENCE
CALL WITH 53 GOVERNORS.
AS THE PRESIDENT SAID MANY
TIMES, WE’RE ALL IN THIS
TOGETHER.
TOGETHER. TODAY’S MEETING IS A REFLECTION
OF THE FACT THAT THIS PRESIDENT
UNDERSTANDS THAT INDUSTRY IS A
PART OF THE ONE TEAM IN AMERICA
THAT IS GOING TO ADDRESS THE
CORONAVIRUS IN THIS COUNTRY.
I’M GRATEFUL FOR THESE LEADERS
OF THE NATION’S TOP
PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES TO COME
IN, SPEAK TO US ABOUT THE
DEVELOPMENT OF VACCINES, BUT
ALSO THE DEVELOPMENT OF
THERAPEUTIC MEDICATIONS THAT CAN
BE AVAILABLE IN THE SHORT TERM.
WE’RE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR
PARTICIPATION.
PARTICIPATION. THE PRESIDENT WILL ALSO BE
TRAVELING TOMORROW TO THE NASH
NAME INSTITUTE OF HEALTH, THE
CDC BEFORE THE WEEK IS OUT AND
WE WILL BE MEETING WITH LEADERS
OF THE AIRLINE INDUSTRY, MEETING
WITH LEADERS OF THE CRUISE LINE
INDUSTRY AND WE WELCOME THE
PARTNERSHIP WITH INDUSTRY AS WE
WORK OUT THE PRESIDENT’S TOP
PRIORITY, WHICH IS THE HEALTH
AND SAFETY AND WELL-BEING OF THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE.
AMERICAN PEOPLE. LET ME ALSO EXTEND MY WELCOME TO
DR. DEBORAH BURKES, ONE OF THE
LEADING EXPERTS IN INFECTION
DISEASES IN THE WORLD.
SHE’S SERVED IN THE UNIFORM IN
THE UNITED STATES.
SHE’S SERVED IN MULTIPLE
ADMINISTRATIONS.
ADMINISTRATIONS. SHE’S GOING TO BE OUR RIGHT ARM
HERE AS WE IMPLEMENT YOUR VISION
FOR PUTTING THE HEALTH AND
SAFETY AND WELL-BEING OF THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE FIRST.
SO WITH THAT, MR. PRESIDENT, I
KNOW SECRETARY AZAR HAS A FEW
THOUGHTS AND LOOK FORWARD TO THE
MEETING.
MEETING. >> ALEX, MAYBE YOU CAN GIVE AN
UPDATE.
UPDATE. >> THANK YOU, MR. PRESIDENT AND
MR. VICE PRESIDENT.
SO WE CONTINUE TO SEE CASES HERE
IN THE UNITED STATES.
WE HAVE TRAGICALLY EXPERIENCED
SEVERAL MORE DEATHS REPORTED
TODAY.
TODAY. OUR CONDOLENCES GO OUT TO THEIR
FAMILIES, OF COURSE.
THAT’S WHY THE PRESIDENT IS
LEADING THIS WHOLE OF GOVERNMENT
RESPONSE AT THE DIRECTION OF THE
PRESIDENT.
PRESIDENT. WE’RE HERE WORKING WITH THE
PHARMACEUTICAL LEADERS ON THREE
KEY ISSUES.
KEY ISSUES. HOW DO WE SPEED THINGS UP, HOW
DO WE SPEED THERAPEUTICS AND
WHAT ARE THE SUPPLY CHAIN
CHALLENGES THAT WE MAY BE FACING
FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS IN
THE UNITED STATES.
WITH REGARD TO THERAPEUTICS AND
VACCINES, WE WANT TO KNOW HOW WE
CANNOT GET IN THEIR WAY BUT
RATHER SPEED THAT DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS ALONG.
PROCESS ALONG. I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY
HAVE COMMISSIONER HAHN HERE FROM
THE FDA.
THE FDA. THIS IS ALL IN THE CONTEXT OF
EMERGENCY POWERS, EMERGENCY USE
AUTHORIZATIONS.
AUTHORIZATIONS. THE PRESIDENT WILL BE ASKING
YOU, HOW CAN WE MAKE IT FASTER?
HOW CAN WE CHALLENGE THE NORMAL
PHARMA TIME LINES THAT CAN BE
SLOW.
SLOW. HOW CAN WE SPEED THAT ALONG
GIVEN THE NATURE OF THE
EMERGENCY AND GIVEN A GOOD
PARTNER WITH YOU AND MAKING THAT
HAPPEN, ESPECIALLY ONCE WE GET
THE EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL
PASSED.
PASSED. >> Neil: CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE
PRESIDENT’S MEETING WITH
EMERGENCY CORONAVIRUS TEAM WITH
THE VICE PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY
AZAR AND OTHER EXECUTIVES
TALKING ABOUT A PLAN AND A
STRATEGY TO LIMIT THE VIRUS’
PRESENCE IN THE UNITED STATES.
NOT BEFORE SIX LIVES WERE LOST,