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<\/strong><\/p>\nInitial manufacturing for the vaccine to take place in Kalamazoo, Michigan<\/i>\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n LANSING, Mich. —\u00a0<\/strong>Today, Governor Gretchen Whitmer released the following statement after Pfizer Inc. announced that the first participants have been dosed in the U.S. in a clinical trial for the BNT162 vaccine program to prevent COVID-19 infection.\u00a0The company also announced that initial manufacturing for the COVID-19 vaccine will be conducted in Kalamazoo, Michigan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThis is great news for our families, our neighbors, and those serving on the front lines during this crisis,\u201d said Governor Whitmer.\u00a0\u201cCOVID-19 has shown how vulnerable our country is when it comes to supply chain and much of the lifesaving materials we need are manufactured out of the country. That\u2019s why we are so proud that one of the largest pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in the world is the Pfizer site right here in Kalamazoo, Michigan. In fact, Michigan has a strong history of vaccine development with the polio and anthrax vaccines. Pfizer is a great partner and the State of Michigan and our strong manufacturing roots stand ready to serve.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The trial is part of a global development program, and the dosing of the first cohort in Germany was completed last week.\u00a0The first stage of the study is taking place at four sites across the U.S. \u2013 NYU School of Medicine; University of Maryland School of Medicine; University of Rochester School of Medicine; and Cincinnati Children\u2019s Hospital, with plans to rapidly scale up the number of sites across the country as Pfizer moves into later stages of development throughout the year.<\/p>\n ###<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/stateofthenation.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Screen-Shot-2020-05-06-at-5.18.45-PM.png\")
Pfizer is making additional at-risk investment to actively scale up their manufacturing capacity and distribution infrastructure to bring a promising vaccine candidate to the world. The company\u2019s clinical trial supply will be made at sites in Andover, Massachusetts and Chesterfield, Missouri, and the initial manufacturing will be conducted in Kalamazoo, Michigan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n