Question: Distribution Of A COVID-19 Vaccine Once A Vaccine For COVID-19 Has Been Developed And Approved, It Is Then Ready For Distribution. How Do You Think It Should Be Shared Fairly Around The World? How Do You Think It Should Be Shared Fairly Within The United States? Governments Must Start Looking Now For An Ethical And Equitable Domestic And Global Process, …

Distribution of a COVID-19 Vaccine Once a vaccine for COVID-19 has been developed and approved, it is then ready for distribution. How do you think it should be shared fairly around the world? How do you think it should be shared fairly within the United States? Governments must start looking now for an ethical and equitable domestic and global process, and it won’t be easy. Your task is to read these 3 following articles or articles of your choice that discuss this dilemma. nce we have a vaccine, how will it be hared fairly around the world? overnments must start looking now for an ethical and equitable lobal process, and it won’t be easy, experts warn Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage A researcher works on a Cavid-19 vaccine at Copenhagen University. Photographs Thibault Savary/AFP via Getty Images In December 2006, the Indonesian authorities refused to hand over samples of the bird flu virus without guarantees that it would benefit from any vaccine produced from them. Amid the swine flu outbreak in 2009, the Australian government ordered a vaccine manufacturer to meet its demand before fulfilling orders overseas. That November, after several rich nations had secured vaccines, officials from the World Health Organization aired concerns that disaster could lie ahead. “Things would be much worse if the pandemic had been more severe, and it vaccine,” said Marie-Paule Kieny, the then head of the WHO’s initiative for vaccine research. “Governments might be less inclined to share the vaccine that they have.” Advertisement 300 Mbps Internet & TV optimum. RewardCard $200 $50 mo. 1 yr. 4000 1234 5678 9010 . 05/26 D CARD RECIPIENT Oro wAuto Pay & Papers Lees Larges VISA + New! $200 Visa Prepaid Card. arma Shop now Replay video o Wired connection 300 W moje ses prees. optimum.” With vaccines seen as one of the few real routes out of the coronavirus crisis, fears of “vaccine nationalism” are already increasing. Each step of creating, testing and mass-producing a vaccine is an epic challenge – but the political and ethical decisions around its subsequent distribution pose another. Governments, including in the UK, are being questioned about how they will get to the front of the queue. How will any eventual vaccine be shared out? Who decides? Will supplies go to the highest bidder? Are rich nations buying up potential vaccines already? And what will stop governments from simply seizing vaccines made in their country? According to experts and industry, it will take at least a year to vaccinate the world from the moment vaccines become available. That’s a 12-month queue, if things go well – after a vaccine is found. “The reality is that there is no process established for this,” says Steven Jones, a Canadian member of a team that created a successful Ebola vaccine. The Botential.roblame have been satt The potential problems have been spotted. On Friday, a parade of world leaders, charity bosses and industry chiefs, including French president Emmanuel Macron, German chancellor Angela Merkel and philanthropist Melinda Gates, united to back a WHO initiative to ensure any treatments and vaccines are shared equitably around the world. Dominic Raab also supported it. Yet just as notable were the nations not in attendance – the US, China, Russia and India. W Year itio A World leaders agree to cooperate on coronavirus vaccine, but US does not take part – video A delicate system of international cooperation is having to be pursued in the middle of a crisis. “We are talking about billions of doses being available to all” says Charlie Weller, the Wellcome Trust’s head of vaccines. “We haven’t got a roadmap for how to do that. Many of these discussions are being worked out now.” orld Healin There are organisations designed to help the fair distribution of a vaccine – most notably Gavi, which aims to increase access to poor countries, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation, which the UK helps to fund. However, some are blunt about the hopes of centrally-managed global cooperation. “Can you imagine the WHO telling Donald Trump that he can only have one tenth of the vaccine that he wants,” says David gar d tenth of the vaccine that he wants,” says David Salisbury, the former director of immunisation at the Department of Health. “Surely, he’s going to look to see who can make a vaccine in the quantities needed in America, and he’s not going to let the vaccine out. That will happen.” Jones is also pessimistic. “The WHO can try to take a leadership role but they are in a difficult situation. They can try to apply moral and ethical guidelines.” UK ministers, too, have already been under pressure to guarantee that Britain will benefit first from vaccines discovered here. Matt Hancock has said he is “ensuring the UK is both contributing to and benefiting from efforts around the globe”. It is inevitable that some nations will try to use “advance purchase agreements” to secure supplies, paying potential vaccine producers on the off chance that their product works. Such agreements provide funds for research, but there is no system for policing their impact on fair distribution. Unfortunately, a vaccine queue is inevitable. Making billions of doses, rather than millions, adds another order of difficulty. Hence, Weller told a briefing last week: “For at least a year after the Covid-19 vaccine becomes available, it is very likely that there’ll be insufficient supply to meet the global demand of billions of doses.” Thomas Breuer, chief medical officer of GSK Vaccines, paints an even starker picture. His company is working with fellow pharmaceutical giant Sanofi to develop a production process that could deliver big quantities. “Let’s say the GSK-Sanofi approach succeeds, that alone will not be enough to supply 20% of the world’s population within one year,” he says. “Several of the large- scale solutions have to come into play if we want to cater for the world’s population over a period of one to two years. One company alone is not enough.” There is also concern from industry about being thrust into the middle of an impossible political tug of war. “They are going to have huge numbers of customers, a lot of whom are going to be waving dollar bills, euros and pounds.” says Salisbury. Hence, many are praying for an international vaccine agreement. “Now is the time to be having the government conversation me agreement. “Now is the time to be having the government conversation about those allocation principles,” says Richard Torbett, chief executive of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. “Let’s not wait until we’ve got something to fight over.” He adds that it simply will not be left to manufacturers to decide who gets what. “They will start from the point of saying, we want to maximise global access.” The threat of export bans on vaccines is clearly a concern. “It would really be a mistake for global leaders to be tempted into that sort of behaviour,” says Torbett. He hopes that, in the end, the need for multiple vaccines from many different global sources could encourage international cooperation: “Every country will want to have fair allocation.” While some leaders may be tempted to go it alone, Weller says such actions could ultimately come back to haunt them: “As long as Covid is out of control somewhere, it threatens everyone, everywhere. That’s what it comes down to.” we have a small favour to ask. Millions rely on the Guardian for independent journalism that stands for truth and integrity. Readers chose to support us financially more than 1.5 million times in 2020, joining existing supporters in 180 countries. For 2021, we’re committing to another year of high-impact reporting that can counter misinformation and offer an authoritative, trustworthy source of news for everyone. With no shareholders or billionaire owner, we set our own agenda and provide independent journalism that’s free from commercial and political influence. When it’s never mattered more, we can investigate and challenge without fear or favour. Unlike many others, we have never put up a paywall. We have chosen to keep Guardian journalism free and open for all readers, regardless of where they live or what they can afford to pay. We do this because we believe everyone deserves to read accurate news and thoughtful analysis. In the last year alone, we offered readers a comprehensive, international perspective on critical events – from the Black Lives Matter protests, to the US presidential election, Brexit, and the ongoing pandemic. We enhanced our reputation for urgent, powerful reporting on the climato O WHO drawing up plans for ‘fair, o equitable’ access to COVID-19 vaccine Reuters REUTERS Jun 18, 2020. June 18, 2020 • < 1 minute read. Join the conversation GENEVA – The World Health Organization is drawing up plans to help decide who should be prioritized for a vaccine against COVID-19 once an inoculation has been approved, its chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan said on Thursday. The framework to ensure “fair and equitable access” would give priority to three group: frontline workers such as medics and the police, vulnerable people over 65 years old or at higher risk due to illness, and those in higher- transmission settings such as meat factories, prisons or care homes, she said. (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva and Kate Kelland in London; Writing by Josephine Mason Editing by Peter Graff) 10 53 5 Queen El NOTICE FOR THE POSTMEDIA NETWORK This website uses cookies to personalize your content including Read more How the U.S. might distribute a coronavirus vaccine Eileen Drage O’Reilly f in Intration Anne Capolaco Now that there are glimmers of hope for a coronavirus vaccine, governments, NGOs and others are hashing out plans for how vaccines could be distributed once they are available – and deciding who will get them first. Why it matters: Potential game-changer vaccines will be sought after by everyone from global powers to local providers. After securing supplies, part of America’s plan is to tap into its military know-how to distribute those COVID-19 vaccines. How it works: In his May 15 announcement of Operation Warp Speed (OWS) — the official effort to accelerate the fight against the pandemic – President Trump said that when a vaccine is ready, the U.S. government will deploy every plane, truck, and soldier required to help distribute it to the American people as quickly as possible. • “The military are, in essence a hyper-planning institution and they’re logistics. And they have a reach and a capacity unlike other institutions,’ says Stephen Morrison, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. • While specific details are unknown, according to Morrison and Andy Pekosz, professor of microbiology and immunology at Johns Hopkins University, the effort may build upon the current seasonal flu vaccine system that distributes large numbers of vaccines to hospitals, clinics and providers over a short period of time. “That’s the same framework we’re going to want for COVID-19. Pekosz notes. • Some issues need to be thought out beforehand, says Pekosz. For one thing. people may need multiple doses, spaced weeks apart, and the whole process will likely take many, many months.” peuple inay neeu murupie uuses, spaceu weens apail, and we will process will likely take many, many months. Who gets the first vaccines will need to be prioritized under a rolling immunization protocol, which may initially target front-line health workers and high-risk groups, both Morrison and Pekosz said. Ensuring equitable access is also key. • Jonathan Moreno, a bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania, tells Axios the CDC may release guidelines on how to prioritize the first group of vaccines. • He adds that the millions of military personnel may be near the top of that list, and that’s a lot of arms to poke. . Concerns over people jumping the line should not be high, Moreno says. “It wouldn’t be a problem, if it’s done properly, because you would have to account for every dose. And, if you’re a logistician – and this is why the military is so good — you know exactly how many bullets you used in combat, down to the individual bullet.” Other considerations include what may happen once more than one vaccine is available and how to handle misinformation . “There could be vaccines that require three doses, there could be vaccines that require one dose. There could be vaccines that may be performed at 70% and others that perform at 85%, Pekosz says. Gossip networks might start promoting one over the other, causing complications, he adds. • Topol also points to problems stemming from the significant anti-vax minority, which is very worrisome.” Details: In the U.S., Operation Warp Speed will oversee the push for COVID-19 vaccines (plus diagnostics and therapies). Details: In the U.S., Operation Warp Speed will oversee the push for COVID-19 vaccines (plus diagnostics and therapies). • The public-private partnership incorporates leaders from drug companies, the military and various regulatory agencies. Army Gen. Gustave Perna is head of the logistics aspect. • BARDA, a federal agency that funds R&D projects and is part of the operation, has received more than $6.5 billion from Congress for countermeasures and so far has partially funded five vaccine developers: Merck and IAVI, AstraZeneca. Moderna. Sanofi’s Protein Sciences and Janssen • HHS recently said it hopes to have first doses of AstraZeneca’s investigational vaccine ready as early as October. The company says it now has the capacity to source 1 billion doses through 2021. What they’re saying: While public health experts agree speed is key during a pandemic, this is countered by the fact that there’s only so much time that can be cut from vaccine production and distribution. . “The problem with some of the timelines I’ve seen with Operation Warp Speed is that they probably aren’t realistic in terms of the full testing of the vaccine that has to occur before we starting thinking about scaling up and distribution,” Pekosz says. • Eric Topol, executive vice president at Scripps Research agrees there are many challenges. “Obviously we’d like to get this synthetic immunity built using a vaccine rather than getting everybody exposed to the virus, but, it’s a daunting task, no question. We’ve got 330 million people distributed throughout the country.” Plus, several of the platforms being used to develop COVID-19 vaccines are new, Plus, several of the platforms being used to develop COVID-19 vaccines are new, including Moderna’s mRNA vaccine that stirred optimism last week, and are not yet proven as safe in humans and scalable for billions of people. . There’s never been a successful vaccine made for humans against a coronavirus. . And this virus continues to stymie scientists, including how immune systems respond, which is important to understand for vaccine development. The big picture: All nations – including developing nations with few funds – will need access to vaccines to build herd immunity. • The World Health Organization and nonprofits like the Gates Foundation and Gavi are taking steps to ensure developing nations have access to vaccines when available. • Many Big Pharma companies are promising they will distribute as many vaccines as they can produce, to everyone. • But, some worry the world will face the same issues it did during the HiNi epidemic a decade ago, when nationalism and big money held sway. The bottom line: “We’ve never faced anything of this scale, and urgency and complexity before. … The pressures to get the vaccine out are simply going to be extraordinary.” Morrison says. Go deeper: • The race to make vaccines faster • FDA promises coronavirus vaccine will meet high safety standards