We are on the verge of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine being rolled out in the U.S.

It comes after a committee endorsed the vaccine, paving the way for Food and Drug Administration clearance.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar says that the FDA told Pfizer they plan to "approve" the vaccine, which means the vaccinations could begin next week.

FDA approval could take a few days. Then states will have the vaccine within 24 hours, according to Operation Warp Speed. 

On Thursday, the FDA advisory committee concluded the shot appears safe and effective against the coronavirus in people 16 and older.

The panel heard from researchers as well as participants in the trials during the nine-hour meeting about their experience with the vaccine. The company says it is 95% effective after two doses.

Initially Long Island would receive 26,500 doses. Doctors say the vaccine is badly needed especially after the daily death toll in the country went above 3,000 earlier this week.

"It's not a decision of the exact safety of the vaccine as much as which one is safer to do, be vaccinated or not be vaccinated, and to me the data is very clear that it makes sense to be vaccinated," says Dr. Bruce Farber, of Northwell Health.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo says New York's first 170,000 doses could arrive Sunday or Monday. Cuomo says another 346,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine are expected the week of Christmas, pending FDA approval. The state plans on implementing an aggressive distribution plan, focusing on poor and minority communities.

Experts say even after a vaccine rolls out, we will likely still have to wear masks and practice social distancing well into next year.