The Biden government’s purchase of 200 million additional doses of Pfizer and Modern means the US can completely vaccinate 300 million people with just those two vaccines – and 355 million Lake people when four additional vaccines get FDA approval.
Why it matters: 250 million adults live in the US, many of whom do not choose to be vaccinated. It also now controls much of the global vaccine supply. The White House says the US will eventually donate excess doses to other countries, but it has not released a plan to do so.
The state of affairs: The administration was focused almost entirely on making sure that every American who wants a vaccine can get one this summer.
- With the additional Pfizer and Moderna doses – and up to 40 million Johnson & Johnson doses ready to use if approved – the White House is increasingly confident that they will achieve that goal.
- In the meantime, the government will “develop a framework to deliver excess doses … through the COVAX facility as needed,” said State Department spokesman Ned Price.
- They will have to balance distributing doses around the world with holding back for possible booster shots or vaccine hesitation.
Between the lines: Sources in the administration stress that despite bulk orders, only two vaccines have been approved and that supplies on the ground are scarce. Until that changes, they say, it’s too soon to focus on sharing doses worldwide.
The state of affairs: Many countries’ vaccination plans rely entirely on the global COVAX initiative, which aims to distribute two billion doses this year, mainly to low and middle-income countries. Some don’t expect to vaccinate most of their population until 2023.
- According to a spokesman for Gavi, the international vaccine alliance, COVAX is developing a platform for donations, which is expected to increase in the second half of 2021 as rich countries meet their domestic needs.
- Biden has said the US will participate in COVAX, which Donald Trump disapproved of, but has not yet made any specific commitments.
- Countries, including Canada and France, have said they will contribute doses to COVAX, but only Norway has promised to do that in parallel with the domestic vaccination program.
Meanwhile India and China make bilateral donations to neighboring countries, while China and Russia sell their state-funded incentives around the world.
- White House press secretary Jen Psaki warned on Friday that China and Russia could use vaccines to force other countries to do so.
- She also emphasized that the US pledged $ 4 billion to Gavi in December for global vaccinations, and that Biden’s recovery plan includes $ 11 billion more for global relief efforts.
- Canada and the UK have bought even more doses in relation to their population than the US, but the US manages most of the total doses.
What they say: “From an American perspective, we’re losing a bit of the messaging war that is out there,” says Dr. Krishna Udayakumar, Director of Duke University’s Global Health Innovation Center.
- “Looking at six months from now, it might be the fact that the US has donated more doses than any other country in the world. But right now, the storyline is how we buy more and hoard more of the supply. “
Dr. Zeke Emanuel, vice-provost for global initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania, acknowledges that the bulk purchases have sparked international criticism, but says things will look very different in the spring. By then the US will have ramped up domestic distribution and will be able to think more about delivering doses worldwide.
- Emanuel, who served on Biden’s COVID-19 advisory board during the transition, says that as one of the world’s largest coronavirus hotspots – and the largest economy – the US should be a priority country for vaccination under all circumstances.
- He also says the billions invested by the US could help expand global vaccine production in the longer term.
- But for now, “every time a bilateral deal is struck, it means capacity that could serve to support fair access,” Gavi spokesman said.
It comes down to: As Dr. Anthony Fauci has noted, the emerging variants of COVID-19 underscore the need to efficiently distribute vaccines around the world to really get the pandemic under control.
- The US “will be part of that process,” says Fauci. But it is not yet clear what America’s role will be.
Worth nothing: Most of the 1.2 billion doses of six vaccines currently on the books were purchased as part of the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed. Sanofi’s is not on our map as it is not expected until the end of 2021.