Hundreds of thousands more US Covid deaths possible amid vaccine chaos

Scant funding and scattered logistics have slowed distribution process as coronavirus case numbers rise, painting a dire picture for the future

America had no trouble hitting the appalling milestone of 20 million coronavirus cases, but reaching the federal government's own target of vaccinating 20 million people by the end of 2020 proved a huge problem.

Just under three million Americans were vaccinated by the time the crystal-encrusted ball dropped in New York's almost-deserted Times Square at midnight on New Year's Eve to mark the end of a hellish year.