US will share COVID-19 vaccine around the world
The US will share up to 60 million doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine with India and other countries, according to Biden administration officials.
The move follows a phone call Monday morning between President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
A senior Biden administration official said during the afternoon meeting about the decision to send oxygen, drugs and supplies for vaccine production to India: “Our two nations have suffered a lot of damage. harmful. “We remember India’s generosity towards us in the early days of the pandemic.”
The announcement was made that 1 out of every 3 cases of COVID-19 are recorded daily now in india. In April, the outbreak in India saw a record number of cases overwhelming hospitals and oxygen supplies. About 2,500 deaths a day are now reported there, considered by many to be a low number 5 to 10 times higher.
National security officials in the Biden administration said India’s dramatic rise in cases and the ongoing pandemic elsewhere justifies the release of dosages from the gunpowder’s supply. America. Supplies of other vaccines are expected to be available to every adult in the United States by June.
An AstraZeneca vaccine is authorized in India but is still pending FDA action in the US. The company hasn’t even officially applied for this license. Safety Rating of those injections will be administered by the FDA before they are shipped. Ten million doses are currently available and another 50 million are in production. Previously, the US lent Mexico and Canada 4 million shots of AstraZeneca.
“In short, this is good news but long overdue,” said Lawrence Gostin of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University. “However, what we are seeing are two vaccines – one for the developed world and one for the poor. AstraZeneca has not been authorized in the US, so it can be donated. But America is hoarding highly effective vaccines as mRNA vaccines. I hope the US will start funding all of their vaccines. It is morally right, but also in our interest. “
Administration officials say the United States will consider sharing more vaccines as the country’s supply grows and the population is vaccinated.
Over the weekend, the European Union activated a medical assistance program to deliver oxygen and medical supplies to India, while Singapore and Saudi Arabia also sent oxygen. Russia also said it would provide medical assistance to India. The White House announced on Sunday that it has send ventilator and protective equipment to India.
Peter Aldhous contributed reporting to this story.