Money Rules: Wealthy Countries Have Bought Most of the Most Promising COVID-19 Vaccines

By
Shawn Ambrose
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“Sharing is caring.”

That’s what my grandfather always tells me after he steals all the kachang from my Ice Kachang. 

Me: But there’s only plain ice left.

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Grandfather: That’s the best part.

While it was hard for our brains to fully appreciate the meaning of the phrase when we were younger, we now know that we should help out the less well-off if we’re in a position to do so.

In this troubling year, when a deadly virus is ravaging the globe, ensuring that every country, rich or poor, has equitable access to vaccine would be the right thing to do.

But instead, the richest countries are hoarding the vaccines all for themselves.

Money Rules: Wealthy Countries Have Bought Most of the Most Promising COVID-19 Vaccines

According to Reuters, 90% of people in some poor countries could miss out on getting Covid-19 vaccines because they’ve been snapped up by rich nations who have purchased far more doses than they need.

Rich countries account for just 14% of the population, but they’ve already purchased 53% of the total stock of the most-promising vaccines as of last month.

The People’s Vaccine Alliance urged pharmaceutical companies working on Covid-19 vaccines to share their technology and intellectual property with the World Health Organisation, so more doses can be produced.

But since governments are prioritising their own people, what should have been a global effort to ensure equitable access to vaccines for all has turned into a nationalistic battle for doses.

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With dollar signs in their eyes, some pharmaceutical companies may not be able to see the desperate need of poorer countries for Covid-19 vaccines.

“During these unprecedented times of a global pandemic, people’s lives and livelihoods should be put before pharmaceutical company profit,” Mohga Kamal-Yanni, an advisor for People’s Vaccine Alliance told Reuters. 

Three Promising Vaccines

At the moment, there are three Covid-19 vaccines for which efficacy results have been announced.

This includes Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, both of which have around 95% efficacy.

The third, from AstraZeneca, was shown to be 90% effective at preventing illness from Covid-19.

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However, when tested on a larger group, the AstraZeneca vaccine was only 62% effective.

While AstraZeneca pledged to provide 64% of their doses to people in developing nations, this only accounts for 18% of the world’s population.

Moreover, almost all the available doses of the vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech have been snapped up by rich countries.

Some of these countries include the United States, Britain, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, Australia, and Hong Kong.

Canada has reportedly purchased enough vaccines to immunise its population five times over.

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Ensuring that all countries have equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines isn’t just a token of goodwill, it’s a human rights obligation. 

Everyone deserves access to a Covid-19 vaccine, no matter their financial situation.

Featured Image: angellodeco / Shutterstock.com

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Shawn Ambrose
Email: shawn.ambrose@goodyfeed.com