How many people in the world are vaccinated?

Months after the first person was vaccinated with the COVID-19 vaccine, hundreds of millions of vaccines were distributed, but vaccine distribution was not equal around the world.

Several countries, including the United States, are making rapid progress in immunizing their population. Americans are given millions of shots, ranking the United States as one of the countries with the highest immunization rates per 100 people.

However, many poor countries have not yet reported single doses, as rich countries have secured higher doses than their populations need.

When asked about current global immunization, “we still have a way to go,” said Krutika Kuppalli, vice chairman of the Global Health Commission of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. “There are still many countries that have not even started vaccination of people.”

“I’m lucky to live here in the United States and get some medicine,” Kuppari said. I was born in another country. “

Global immunization rate of COVID-19

Israel is the world leader in immunization of the population against COVID-19, followed by the United Arab Emirates and Chile. More than half of Israel’s population is at least partially vaccinated.

Well-trained health care providers in the country and a digitized community-based healthcare system that can identify high-risk people were key drivers of success. According to Israeli health experts.. The country also has a tradition of regular emergency preparedness exercises.

The United Arab Emirates is not too late. With a population about the same as Israel Contributes to its rapid vaccination pace Use the Ministry of Health app to coordinate government actions, strong leadership, public awareness campaigns, and simple immunization registration procedures.

Gap between countries

High-income countries make up only 16% of the world’s population, but some countries buy enough vaccines to more than double their population.

by ONE Policy Team SurveyThe wealthiest countries in the world buy one billion times more doses in bulk than their citizens need. In other parts of the world, only 2.5 billion doses are available, which is not enough to vaccinate the population.

Scope of vaccination according to national income level

Experts say that soon the United States will have a surplus of vaccines.

Ezekiel Emanuel, a health policy expert and professor at the University of Pennsylvania who advised President Joe Biden’s transition, told USA Today in late March.

Emmanuel said the United States should send excess vaccines abroad. “We can’t stop the production of (vaccines) and we can’t sit in our supply. It’s meaningless and ethical,” he said.

Percentage of the population eligible for vaccine purchase

“If no other country is vaccinated, it’s not good for the health of the world,” Emmanuel said. “And if you want to go back to normal, it’s not good to go back to normal, partly because of trade, travel, education, and other interactions. All of them require vaccinations around the world.”

Risk of vaccine injustice

Model suggests Even if high-income countries are fully vaccinated by the middle of this year, and developing countries can only be vaccinated by half of their population, the global economy could lose about $ 4 trillion.

Percentage of population vaccinated at least partially depending on national income level

Another danger that unequal vaccination rates around the world can pose is the emergence of new variants. The longer the period of sustained community spread, the more likely the virus will mutate. Mutants from the unvaccinated population can infect those in the vaccinated population.

According to the World Health Organization, vaccines currently under development or approved are expected to provide at least some protection against new viral variants. However, It’s important to limit spreads Of the virus to prevent mutations that may reduce the effectiveness of existing vaccines. As more people are vaccinated, the circulation of the virus is expected to decrease, resulting in fewer mutations.

According to infectious disease expert Kuppali, vaccinated people can travel elsewhere in the world, be exposed to new strains of the virus that are not covered by the vaccine, become infected, and infect others. there is.

“We are sure to protect everyone. It’s not just about life and death, it’s about the quality of life of people after being infected with COVID,” she added.

Low- and middle-income countries have relied heavily on COVAX, a UN-sponsored donor-funded program to support the development and delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to low- and middle-income countries. Rich countries can buy vaccines in bulk, fund the development and production of vaccines, and ensure vaccination in poor countries.

The fund plans to provide 2 billion doses by the end of the year with the aim of covering at least 20% of the population of participating countries. However, the lowest estimate required for herd immunity starts at 70%.There was also Delayed delivery of vaccine..

“There are no boundaries or barriers to infectious diseases. COVID does not discriminate on the basis of socioeconomic status, race or ethnicity, so it can affect anyone,” Kuppali said. Told. “Our world is not safe unless everyone is protected. That’s how we stop the pandemic.”

Vaccine diplomacy

China and Russia are sending vaccines to dozens of countries in the Middle East, Asia and Latin America.

China has approved four vaccine candidates, all of which are used in other countries. We have secured purchase contracts with more than a dozen countries and donated some doses.

Chinese vaccine makers Sinopharm and Sinovac have released data on vaccines that show levels of efficacy compatible with those required by WHO.

Detailed efficacy data for China National Pharmaceutical’s vaccine have not been released, but the vaccine is in the middle, according to its developer, the Beijing Bioproducts Research Institute, a division of the China National Biotech Group, a subsidiary of China National Pharmaceutical Group. Based on the data, it was 79.34% effective in preventing people from developing the disease.

In Sinovac trials, results varied from country to country, with efficacy ranging from 50.65% to 83.5%.

Russia has approved two vaccines, one of which is already in use in 20 countries.

The Russian Sputnik V vaccine was 91.6% effective against symptomatological COVID-19 and 100% effective against severe and moderate illness, according to an interim analysis of the results of Phase 3 vaccine trials. Published in The British Medical Journal Lancet..

“We’re definitely looking at vaccine diplomacy, but that’s just part of a larger, established concept called” soft power, “” said Emmanuel, a former Biden health adviser.

He added that many countries, including the United States, are using “soft power” to strengthen relations between countries. A good example is the Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief initiated under the George W. Bush administration. A global epidemic.

“Using healthcare to improve relations with other countries is nothing new,” Emmanuel said. “The vaccine happens to be different.”

How much does the vaccine cost per dose?

Most of the vaccines currently in use require two doses for complete vaccination.

The AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine is the cheapest at just $ 4 per dose. The company promised not to benefit from the vaccine for the duration of the pandemic. Vaccines can be stored in a regular refrigerator for up to 6 months, facilitating transportation and distribution in developing countries.

At the same time, Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines require a complex cold chain to safely distribute them. These are also the most expensive vaccines. So far, companies have sold most of their doses to high-income countries such as the United States, Canada and the European Union.

Efficacy numbers cannot be compared directly, as trials are conducted differently from time to time.

Vaccine manufactured by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech partnership Seems to be 90% effective In preventing COVID-19 in a real world setting.

According to the company, the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine is 76% effective in preventing symptomatological COVID-19 two weeks after the second dose, resulting in serious illness and hospitalization in a US-based clinical trial. It was 100% effective in stopping it.

The J & J vaccine has been shown to be 72% effective in moderate to severe illness and 85% effective in preventing the most severe illness.

Where are other vaccines used?

When will we be vaccinated?

In the United States, all adults are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. At the current pace of vaccination, the United States will take several more months to fully vaccinate most of its population.

According to an analysis by the Duke Global Health Innovation CenterThis year, more than 12 billion doses can be administered, and 70% of the world’s population can be vaccinated.

However, it may still take years for the majority of the world’s population to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Estimates indicate that there is not enough vaccine dose to cover the entire world population At least until 2023Currently, only about 12 countries have the ability to produce the COVID-19 vaccine.

The proposal to temporarily suspend certain intellectual property rights of the COVID-19 vaccine until herd immunity is reached is currently supported by about 100 countries.

It is also supported by a coalition of organizations called the People’s Vaccine Alliance, which includes the United Nations HIV / AIDS organization UNAIDS and the human rights group Amnesty International. Discussions are underway at the World Trade Organization.