How rich countries are making the pandemic last longer
A program called Covax wants to distribute vaccines fairly. Is it working?
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Early in the Covid-19 pandemic, many of the world’s richest countries poured money into the race for a vaccine. Billions of dollars, from programs like the US’s Operation Warp Speed, funded development that brought us multiple Covid-19 vaccines in record time. But it also determined where those vaccines would go. Before vaccine doses had even hit the market, places like the US and the UK had bought up nearly the entire supply.
This turns out to be an old story. In nearly every modern global health crisis, from smallpox to malaria to H1N1, rich countries have bought up vital medical supplies, making poor countries wait sometimes decades for lifesaving support. It’s effectively a system in which where you live determines whether you live or die of a preventable disease.
Philippines eyeing local Covid-19 vaccine production, says vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez freerepublic.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from freerepublic.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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(Contributed/NTF) March 08, 2021 A SECOND shipment of AstraZeneca vaccines arrived Sunday, March 7, 2021, completing the first tranche of donations from the Covax facility.
Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., chief implementer of the National Task Force Against Covid-19 and vaccine czar, received the shipment with 38,400 additional doses of the AZ vaccine.
These were transported by KLM Asia three days after the first shipment with 487,200 doses arrived.
A total of 525,600 doses of AZ vaccine have now been delivered to the Philippines from Covax, the global initiative to ensure vaccine equity.
To date, a total of 54,500 AZ doses have already been deployed across the country. Of this number 1,500 doses have been sent to hospitals in the National Capital Region, 13,000 to Calabarzon, 10,000 to Cordillera Administrative Region and 20,000 to Central Luzon.
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Medical workers 60 and above will be first to receive AZ vaccine. (File photo)
+ March 08, 2021 MEDICAL workers who are senior citizens will be first in line to be injected with the 20,000 doses of the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) allotted for Central Visayas.
According to Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, Department of Health (DOH) 7 spokesperson, after the “senior” medical workers are vaccinated, what’s left of the vaccines will be distributed to other age groups.
She said they initially expected the AZ vaccine to arrive in Cebu either on Monday, March 8, 2021, or Tuesday, March 9. But they were told there is no fixed date yet on when the vaccine will actually get here, she said.