UNICEF USA Hails U.S. Plan to Share COVID-19 Vaccine Doses
The Biden Administration commits to support the COVAX Facility’s mission to distribute COVID-19 vaccines equitably around the world.
UNICEF USA applauds the Biden Administration for its commitment to share at least 80 million available COVID-19 vaccine doses by the end of June and to donate additional doses as supply allows. Three-quarters of the initial 25 million doses will be donated through the COVAX Facility, prioritizing Latin America and the Caribbean, South and Southeast Asia and Africa. The Administration’s decision to use the COVAX Facility is a powerful endorsement of its mission to equitably distribute vaccines around the world.
These commitments could not come at a better time. The longer the virus continues to spread, the higher the risk of additional variants emerging. And, global vaccine availability is low, leading to the increased vulnerability of communities around the world. No one is safe until we are all safe, and children are facing profound, long-term impacts on their health, education and protection.
Following this important announcement, continued U.S. leadership will be needed to donate additional doses, using COVAX as much as possible. UNICEF USA encourages the United States to use next weekend’s G7 Summit to urge other nations to follow its lead and both #DonateDosesNow and make existing pledged doses available now. UNICEF is calling for 20 percent of available doses to be shared by August, and up to a billion by the end of the year, to address critical supply gaps and help end the pandemic.
Top photo: The arrival of the first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX Facility in Bangladesh at the end of May bolsters the country’s effort to protect health workers, teachers, the elderly and people most at risk. © UNICEF/UN0471114/Chakma
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