Head of the US National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr Anthony Fauci, has said that the country could get COVID-19 under control by early next year if vaccinations ramp up, Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday.

Full approval by the US Food and Drug Administration for the Pfizer(NYSE:PFE)-BioNTech (Nasdq:BNTX) COVID-19 vaccine paves the way for more people to get vaccinated. Also, there is potential approval for Moderna Inc's (Nasdaq:MRNA) in the coming weeks and authorisation for younger children by autumn.

Dr Fauci was quoted as saying during a Tuesday press conference: "I would like to appeal to the people in the country who are not vaccinated to realise that we have the capability, among ourselves, to essentially cut down the time frame to getting to the end of this pandemic. I think there's a reasonable chance that Pfizer or Moderna could get FDA clearance for children under 12 before the upcoming holiday season. Hopefully by the mid-late fall and early winter."

US officials during the press briefing also urged private employers and more state and local governments to require staff to get vaccinated in a bid to drive up vaccination rates, Reuters added.