WASHINGTON: To help ramp up vaccination efforts, the pharmaceutical company Merck has agreed to help mass-produce Johnson & Johnson's single-dose Covid-19 vaccine. President Biden now says there will be sufficient doses for every adult in the country by the end of May.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday. A day later, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended the vaccine to be administered for Americans 18 years of age and older.

It is the third Covid-19 vaccine and the first single-dose vaccine authorized in the United States. The first doses of the Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine were administered Tuesday as initial shipments reached states and vaccination sites.

The other two vaccines available in the country are developed by American drugmaker Pfizer in partnership with German company BioNTech, and by American drugmaker Moderna, respectively.

US President Joe Biden said Tuesday the United States would have enough Covid-19 vaccine doses for every adult American by the end of May, which would dramatically accelerate his timeline previously set for the end of July.

Biden announced that Johnson & Johnson will partner with Merck to help accelerate its vaccine production. Biden also announced he was directing states to prioritize teachers in their vaccine distribution plans in a bid to reopen schools.

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