Fauci: Covid vaccines could get full FDA approval in the "next few weeks"

NIAID director Anthony Fauci said on Sunday that he hopes the COVID-19 vaccines will receive full approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration "within the next few weeks."

Why it matters: Fauci's remarks on NBC's "Meet the Press" come at a pivotal point in the pandemic, as the Delta variant has caused coronavirus cases across the United States to balloon.

• The U.S. has reported a total of about 35 million confirmed cases as of Saturday.
• Fauci underscored the importance of quickly inoculating the millions of Americans who remain unvaccinated, and said he believes full FDA approval would drive the cause.
• "I hope that it will be within the next few weeks. I hope it's within the month of August," he said.

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