Tag: Covax

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Health

The place Covax, the Huge World Vaccine Program, Went Improper

Where Covax, the Vast Global Vaccine Program, Went Wrong

Dr. Seth Berkley, the chief executive of Gavi, the nonprofit at Covax’s heart, said insufficient early financing made supply shortages inevitable. When distribution problems of the type in Chad and Benin emerge, Covax tries to “move those vaccines to other countries, but then to work with those countries to try to improve capacity,” he said.

Supporters and critics agree that the program must improve, rapidly. As of early July, confidential Covax documents indicated that 22 nations, some with surging fatalities, reported being nearly or entirely out of doses from the program.

“The way Covax was packaged and branded, African countries thought it was going to be their savior,” said Dr. Catherine Kyobutungi, who directs the African Population and Health Research Center. “When it didn’t meet expectations, there was nothing else.”

In the frantic early months of 2020, health experts strategized on how to equitably inoculate the world. Covax was the answer, bringing together two Gates-funded nonprofits, Gavi and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, or CEPI; the World Health Organization; and UNICEF, which would lead delivery efforts. It hoped to be a major global vaccine buyer, for both rich and poor nations, giving it the clout to bully vaccine makers.

But if rich nations pledged donations, they did not make obliging partners. Britain negotiated for wealthier participants to be given a choice of vaccines to purchase through Covax, creating delays, said Kate Elder, senior vaccines policy adviser for Doctors Without Borders’ Access Campaign.

Most important, rich nations became rivals in a vaccine-buying race, paying premiums to secure their own shots while slow-walking financial pledges that Covax needed to sign deals.

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Business

First COVAX vaccine cargo arrives in Ghana, hope for creating world

First COVAX vaccine shipment arrives in Ghana, hope for developing world

A shipment of Covid-19 vaccines from the global COVAX vaccination program will arrive at Kotoka International Airport in Accra, Ghana on February 24, 2021.

Nipah Dennis | AFP | Getty Images

The first shipment of Covid-19 vaccines, delivered under the World Health Organization’s COVAX program, arrived in Ghana on Wednesday. This is a hopeful turning point for developing countries, who may be lagging behind in the global race to vaccinate a virus that has killed nearly 2.5 million people worldwide.

The flight brought 600,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, which is believed to be far easier to distribute in developing countries because it does not require extremely cold storage temperatures like the Pfizer-GenTech and Moderna vaccines.

The vaccines delivered on Wednesday will be prioritized for frontline medical professionals, those over 60 and those with pre-existing health conditions, according to the Ghanaian Ministry of Information.

“Today is the historic moment for which we have planned and worked so hard,” said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore in a joint statement from her agency and WHO Ghana.

“With the first shipment of cans, we can deliver on the promise of the COVAX Facility to ensure that people from less affluent countries are not left behind in the race for life-saving vaccines.”

Airport workers transport a shipment of Covid-19 vaccines from Covax’s global Covid-19 vaccination program onto dolls at Kotoka International Airport in Accra on February 24, 2021.

Nipah Dennis | AFP | Getty Images

COVAX is a global plan jointly led by WHO, an international vaccine alliance called Gavi, and the Coalition for Innovation in Epidemic Preparation.

While wealthier nations drive costly vaccine development and procurement, poorer countries suffer the consequences of inequality. Mark Suzman, executive director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said in December that it may be too late for the vaccines to be distributed fairly as rich countries have already closed massive deals.

Wealthy nations, making up just 14% of the world’s population, had secured 53% of the world’s top performing coronavirus vaccines by December, according to a group of human rights activists called the People’s Vaccine Alliance.

COVAX was founded to ensure fair access to vaccines worldwide. By the end of 2021, 20% of people in the 92 poorest countries in the world are to be vaccinated through donations. Several other middle-income countries will purchase vaccines through COVAX on a self-funded basis. The plan this year is to deliver 2 billion doses of vaccines that have been recognized by WHO as safe and effective.

The recordings shipped to Ghana were produced by the Indian Serum Institute, which has been granted access to the intellectual property that enables it to manufacture vaccines based on the Oxford-AstraZeneca formula. The African Union has secured around 670 million doses of the Serum Institute’s vaccine for its member countries. The goal is for 60% of the 1.3 billion people in Africa to be vaccinated in the next two to three years.

“By far the fastest of all time”

“This is amazingly important. We want the gap between vaccinating the rich and the poor to be narrowed to zero,” said Hassan Damluji, assistant director of global politics and advocacy at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, in an interview with Wednesday CNBC.

“We know that it usually takes decades for a vaccine to be developed and used for the first time in rich countries and then to reach the poorest people in the world. So Ghana receives its first shipment, just three months after the first vaccine rollouts World are more than extraordinary, “he said. “It is by far the fastest ever.”

A health worker applies a Sinovac CoronaVac Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) vaccine to an elderly Citzen on February 18, 2021 in Sao Goncalo, near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Ricardo Moraes | Reuters

The Gates Foundation has spent $ 1.75 billion fighting the coronavirus and has focused on vaccine development within COVAX.

Damluji noted that the program’s vaccine sourcing for poor countries was funded entirely by donors at a time when every developed world economy is in recession. “So it’s pretty remarkable,” he said.

Vaccine inequality will plunge countries into deeper poverty

The exclusion of poor countries from vaccination programs launched in wealthier countries will have devastating and lasting consequences, warn economists and public health experts that dramatically increase inequalities, hinder social and economic development and leave dozens of countries in significantly higher debt.

These inequalities, according to Oxford Economics, mean that the long-term economic damage of the pandemic will be twice as severe in emerging markets as it is in developed countries. A study by the RAND Corporation predicts the global economy will lose $ 153 billion in production annually if emerging economies do not get access to vaccines.

The countries of the COVAX donation plan are to receive doses that are appropriate for their populations: Afghanistan, for example, will receive 3 million doses, while Namibia will receive almost 130,000.

The Palestinian Territories expect to receive vaccines through COVAX in March. Iran and Iraq are part of COVAX, as are many lower-income countries in the Middle East. The wealthier Gulf States have sourced their own vaccine supplies directly from the manufacturers, while some, despite their own recessions, also contribute to the COVAX fundraising pool: Saudi Arabia donated $ 300 million and Qatar donated $ 10 million.

The U.S. hadn’t made a contribution to the COVAX facility under the Trump administration, but the Biden administration has pledged the largest donation to date – $ 4 billion.

Damluji pointed out the challenges of COVAX’s goals by running extensive vaccination campaigns in countries with faulty infrastructure, limited logistics and transportation, remote populations, and in some cases violence and war.

“This stuff is a moving target. Rightly the world’s attention is on it and wants to make sure it goes well,” he said. “But a few months ago we didn’t even know which vaccines would work. And now people need them on their doorstep.”

“There will be some complications as well,” he added. “It’s the biggest health procurement effort ever.”

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Health

Pfizer to provide as much as 40 million Covid vaccine doses to Covax international program

Pfizer to supply up to 40 million Covid vaccine doses to Covax global program

A nurse prepares the Pfizer BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine on January 10, 2021 at a vaccination center in Sarcelles near Paris.

ALAIN JOCARD | AFP | Getty Images

Pfizer will deliver up to 40 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine to a global alliance that aims to provide coronavirus vaccines to poor nations, the head of the World Health Organization said on Friday.

The agreement will enable Covax – together with the WHO – to deliver vaccine doses to the participating countries from February, said WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a press conference. Tedros added that until an emergency is approved, the program expects 150 million doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine to be available for distribution in the first quarter of this year.

The Covax program aims to provide 2 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines to participating countries, which include low- to middle-income countries, by the end of this year. The Pfizer BioNTech vaccine requires two vaccinations spaced weeks apart, suggesting the deal would only cover 20 million people.

Tedros said the deal would allow other countries with supplies of Pfizer’s vaccine to donate them to the program. The WHO chief criticized wealthy nations for signing supply agreements with drug manufacturers for their starting doses of Covid-19 vaccines to stockpile supplies from poorer nations.

“This is not only important for COVAX, it is also an important step forward for equitable access to vaccines and an essential part of the global effort to fight this pandemic. We will only be safe everywhere if we are safe everywhere,” so Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, said in a statement.

Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer, said during the press conference that the company will make the vaccine doses available to Covax and poorer countries for a fee. Pfizer was the first company to receive a global list of emergency uses for its vaccine from the WHO, allowing other countries to expedite their regulatory approval processes to begin administering the vaccine.

Bourla said the company will help ship the cans, which require ultra-cold storage and special handling, to low-income countries. UNICEF, which is helping with the dispensing of the cans, previously warned that some of the world’s poorest countries could face the challenge of storing and managing the shots upon arrival.

The program’s contract with Pfizer increases supply agreements to a total of just over 2 billion doses, but negotiations for an additional supply continue. The goal, according to Covax, is to immunize healthcare and other frontline workers as well as some high-risk individuals from the first quarter of this year.

The agreement follows the United States’ decision to remain a member of WHO under President Joe Biden. The new administration will also join the Covax program, a move the Trump administration opposed last year.

“I couldn’t escape the temptation to say that I’m very happy that this press conference is taking place on the day the United States rejoins the WHO organization. I think it’s a symbolic, great day for us,” Pfizer boss Bourla said at the meeting.

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Business

COVAX international Covid vaccine program secures almost 2 billion doses for UNICEF distribution

COVAX global Covid vaccine program secures nearly 2 billion doses for UNICEF distribution

A pharmacist prepares a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine on Wednesday, December 16, 2020 at the UCI Medical Center in Orange, California, United States.

Bing Guan | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The global alliance, which aims to provide coronavirus vaccines to poor nations, announced Friday that it has supply agreements to provide nearly 2 billion doses and could ship them in the first quarter of its approval.

There are 190 countries and territories participating in COVAX, which is jointly managed by the World Health Organization Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation. The facility said it could secure the cans through additional supply agreements with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.

COVAX plans to begin first shipments in the first quarter of 2021, when the drugs are approved. Enough doses should be given in the first half of next year to protect health and social workers in participating economies, the Alliance said. COVAX plans to ship at least 1.3 billion doses to 92 low and middle-income countries that will participate in the facility sometime next year.

“The arrival of vaccines gives us all a glimpse into the light at the end of the tunnel,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organization, in a statement. “But we will only really end the pandemic if we end it everywhere at the same time. That means that it is important to vaccinate some people in all countries, rather than all people in some countries.”

UNICEF announced on Friday that up to 850 tons of Covid-19 vaccines per month could be shipped to middle- to low-income countries over the next year. Commercial airlines will be able to deliver the vaccines to almost all of the 92 countries participating in COVAX, a UNICEF statement said.

The United Nations Children’s Fund is a United Nations agency that provides humanitarian aid to children around the world. UNICEF will work with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to coordinate vaccine procurement and support dispensing of the doses, said Gavi.

The humanitarian organization said the shots will likely be shipped primarily via existing passenger and cargo flights, although some charter flights or alternative modes of transportation will be required for hard-to-reach countries.

However, the world’s poorest countries are still facing a budget gap of $ 133 million for the distribution and storage of the cans, UNICEF said. According to the organization, which assesses global air cargo capacity and routes, the airline’s deliveries would cost the airline up to an estimated $ 70 million.

Countries will face additional challenges once the cans arrive, UNICEF said.

The temperature requirements for the vaccines being developed are range and require cold chain supply lines, trained medical staff and stronger contact efforts, said Henrietta Fore, executive director at UNICEF, in a statement released Friday.

“This is a mammoth and historic endeavor,” Fore said in a statement. “The scale of the task is huge and the stakes have never been higher, but we are ready to take on this.”

UNICEF said it would take $ 410 million to help countries deliver the vaccines and purchase therapeutic drugs and diagnostic tools over the next year. Funding has been a problem for the COVAX facility, which according to a Reuters report on Wednesday, citing internal documents, faces a “very high” risk of default due to lack of funds, delivery risks and complex contractual arrangements.

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World News

Covax, a world well being group, broadcasts vaccine offers to assist much less rich international locations.

Covax, an international health group, announces vaccine deals to help less wealthy countries.

Leaders of an international body promoting global access to coronavirus vaccines, known as Covax, announced on Friday that additional efforts were being made with manufacturers that would provide access to nearly two billion doses of vaccine candidates, more than that Half were intended to be shipped to low and middle income countries.

The aim of the effort is to ensure vaccination of a fifth of the population of the 190 participating countries and economies before the end of next year.

The new contracts cover vaccines that are still under study for efficacy and safety, one from AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford and one from Johnson & Johnson. As of the ongoing discussions, no agreements have been made to source the FDA-cleared BioNTech Pfizer vaccine, which is already being used in countries such as the US and the UK.

The international effort was led by the Gavi public-private health partnership, the Vaccine Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and the World Health Organization.

Friday’s announcement contained the news that a mechanism had been developed for countries with overdoses to share it.

Many high-income nations have agreements with multiple manufacturers that could result in significantly more doses than are required to vaccinate their entire population. Officials from Canada and France announced that they intend to contribute their additional doses via Covax, although they have not given a schedule or say whether they would vaccinate their entire population first.

France will “start exchanging vaccines as early as possible,” said Stephanie Seydoux, the country’s ambassador for global health, at a press conference.

  • In other developments around the world:

  • in the South AfricaScientists and health officials on Friday announced the discovery of a new line of coronavirus that is rapidly dominating virus samples tested in the country. The variant, named 501.V2, has also been associated with faster spread and higher viral load in swabs in a preliminary analysis. Scientists are studying it closely because the variant contains several changes in the part of the virus that allows it to attach to human cells, which is an important target for antibody therapies and vaccines.

  • in the Europe, In the run-up to Christmas there is a patchwork of guidelines across the continent as 500,000 people die. . Germany has put a strict lockdown on Christmas week, and the Netherlands and Italy will take stricter measures during the holidays. France and Spain have some restrictions but have opposed new national bans. In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been criticized for lifting restrictions on Christmas gatherings despite the rise in new infections. The Regional Director of the World Health Organization, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge said in a statement on Friday that it is not now time for Europeans to ease restrictions.

  • As coronavirus cases and hospital stays in Sweden continue to rise, the government issued several new recommendations on Friday, including the use of face masks. “We have to do more now because the medical system is tense,” said Prime Minister Stefan Lofven. The new recommendations include a limit of four people per table in restaurants, cafes and bars, as well as a ban on selling alcohol after 8 p.m. Stores, shopping centers and gyms are asked to limit the number of customers further.