Amid criticism, US to export up to 60 million AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine doses
WASHINGTON, United States — The United States will send up to 60 million doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine abroad, officials announced Monday, as President Joe Biden pledged to "be there" for India in its hour of need.
Critics have accused Washington of "hoarding" the British-developed vaccine, which is not authorized in the country and will likely not be required to vaccinate Americans.
The issue has risen to the fore in recent days as India faces a catastrophic new surge that has overwhelmed its health care system and driven crematoriums to full capacity.
"U.S. to release 60 million Astra Zeneca doses to other countries as they become available," tweeted Andy Slavitt, senior advisor to the White House on Covid response.
BREAKING: U.S. to release 60 million Astra Zeneca doses to other countries as they become available.
— Andy Slavitt (@aslavitt46) April 26, 2021
An administration official told reporters the first 10 million doses could be available "in the coming weeks" after they pass a quality inspection by the Food and Drug Administration.
"Further, there's an estimated additional 50 million doses that are in various stages of production, and these could be completed in stages across May and June," she added.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said at a briefing that the recipient countries have not yet been decided and that the administration was still formulating its distribution plan.
But India appears to be a leading contender after Biden held a telephone call with his counterpart Prime Minister Narendra Modi, pledging US support to fight the Covid surge.
"Today, I spoke with Prime Minister @narendramodi and pledged America's full support to provide emergency assistance and resources in the fight against COVID-19. India was there for us, and we will be there for them," Biden tweeted.
Administration officials added Washington was looking at options to supply oxygen — from direct shipments to generation systems — as well as the antiviral drug remdesivir, personal protective equipment, tests, and teams of experts.
Covid cases declining
The vaccine announcement greatly expands a US action from last month to loan four million AstraZeneca doses to Mexico and Canada.
It also comes as US domestic supply appears increasingly assured, making it unlikely AstraZeneca will be required.
Pfizer and Moderna say they are on track to deliver 600 million doses between them by the end of July. Both are two-dose regimens.
The country has also resumed vaccinations with the Johnson & Johnson single shot, the third authorized injection, after a brief pause over suspected links to a rare form of clotting.
More than 53 percent of adults in the United States have so far received at least one dose of vaccine, according to official data, and domestic demand has begun to taper off as many people who wished to get vaccinated have already done so.
The rate of new daily Covid cases in the United States is also in decline, dipping below a seven-day average of 60,000 for the first time in a month.
Ashish Jha, dean of Brown University's School of Public Health, said one of the main hurdles to sending AstraZeneca doses abroad had been the issue of legal liability, since the original contract was formulated between the company and the United States.
"There may be some adverse events and there may even be events that are not related to the vaccine," Jha said during a webinar, adding the maker was worried about being sued without the indemnity it enjoyed in the United States.
"These are solvable in my mind by India, offering indemnity and protection to AstraZeneca," he added.
But he predicted the issue might be politically sensitive in India if the AstraZeneca vaccine comes to be viewed as a second-tier or "discarded" shot.
Pharma giants Sanofi and GSK said on July 29, 2020, that they have agreed to supply Britain with up to 60 million doses of a potential COVID-19 vaccine. The agreement covers a vaccine candidate developed by France's Sanofi in partnership with the UK's GSK and is subject to a "final contract."
This thread collects some of the major developments in the search for a vaccine to ease the new coronavirus pandemic. (Main photo by AFP/Joel Saget)
As negotiations towards a new pandemic treaty pick up pace, observers warn of watered-down efforts to ensure equitable access to the medical products needed to battle future Covid-like threats.
Shaken by the pandemic, the World Health Organization's 194 member states are negotiating an international accord aimed at ensuring countries are better equipped to deal with the next catastrophe, or even prevent it altogether.
The process is still in the early stages, with the aim of reaching an agreement by May 2024.
But critics warn that revisions being made to the preliminary negotiating text are weakening the language -- notably in a key area aimed at preventing the rampant inequity seen in access to vaccines and other medical products during the Covid pandemic.
"I think it is a real step backwards," Suerie Moon, co-director of the Global Health Centre at the Geneva Graduate Institute, told AFP. — AFP
Africa's first mRNA vaccine hub is ceremonially launched on Thursday to acclaim from the UN's global health chief, who hailed it as a historic shift to help poor countries gain access to life-saving jabs.
The facility was set up in the South African city of Cape Town in 2021 on the back of the success of revolutionary anti-Covid vaccines introduced by Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna.
"This precious project... will bring a paradigm shift in addressing the serious problem we faced, the equity problem, during the pandemic, so (that) it's not repeated again," World Health Organization (WHO) head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tells a media briefing to mark the inauguration. — AFP
China has approved its first locally developed messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine against Covid-19, its manufacturer said Wednesday, months after the relaxation of strict Covid-zero regulations sparked a surge in cases.
The vaccine, developed by CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd, has been approved for "emergency use" by Beijing's health regulator, the company said in a statement.
It showed high efficacy in a trial in which it was used as a booster shot for people who have been given other types of vaccines, the company added, without offering further details. — AFP
COVID-19 vaccine maker Novavax raises doubts about its ability to continue its business, announcing plans to cut spending after struggles in rolling out its coronavirus jab.
Shares of Novavax plummeted 25 percent in extended trading, after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that missed analyst estimates.
While the firm should have enough money to fund operations, the situation is "subject to significant uncertainty," it says in a statement. — AFP
The protection against Covid-19 from being previously infected lasts at least as long as that offered by vaccination, one of the largest studies conducted on the subject says.
Ten months after getting Covid, people still had an 88% lower risk of reinfection, hospitalisation and death, according to the study published in the Lancet journal.
That makes this natural immunity "at least as durable, if not more so" than two doses of Pfizer or Moderna's vaccines, the study says.
The authors nevertheless emphasized that their findings should not discourage vaccination, which remains the safest way to get immunity. — AFP
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