The departments of Defense and Health and Human Services announced a contract with ApiJect Systems America to produce medical-grade injection devices that will be pre-filled with a future vaccine for COVID-19, according to a DOD news release.

The $138 million contract funds “Project Jumpstart” and “RAPID USA.”

“Project Jumpstart” will expand capacity to produce more than 100 million pre-filled syringes so manufacturing can begin when a vaccine is approved and available.

“RAPID will provide increased lifesaving capability against future national health emergencies that require population-scale vaccine administration on an urgent basis,” a DOD spokesperson said. Production will first be based in Connecticut, South Carolina and Illinois but could be expanded to other sites, according to the release.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease official, told NBC News last month that it’s possible there will be a vaccine by January.

He told a Senate committee Tuesday that there is no guarantee a vaccine can be developed, but “I think it is clearly more likely than not.”

Air Force photo by Joshua J. Seybert