THE DOCTOR IS IN
OP / ED BY DR. ADIL MANZOOR
When the coronavirus hit, countries worldwide were scampering to find ways to prevent the death of both their citizens and their economy. However, even in the early stages, it was clear that the only way out of the coronavirus was by developing a vaccine. Before the end of 2020, the coronavirus vaccine was developed. The speed with which the vaccine was developed was unprecedented and is a testament to just how much effort was invested into the vaccine development. aficionado
After the vaccines came, a new problem arose – how to distribute the vaccine across the countries of the world. Unsurprisingly, the high-economy countries, headed by the United States, purchased millions of doses for their citizens. This left many middle-income and poor countries in limbo for months. Fortunately, Covax came to the rescue.
Covax is an initiative led by four main organizations to provide the world with coronavirus vaccines. The organizations are the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi, the World Health Organization (WHO), and UNICEF. Covax aimed at accelerating the development, production, and equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines.
Of course, there was a challenge of getting the vaccines in the early stages. This is, as I mentioned, because of rich countries buying available vaccine doses for their citizens. However, with time, the Covax initiative started excelling in the distribution of vaccines to countries that needed them the most: the low- and middle-income countries.
As of November 2022, the Covax initiative had shipped over 1.8 billion COVID vaccines to 146 countries. By all standards, that’s an impressive achievement. Still, the initiative could not achieve its goal of vaccinating 70 percent of individuals on the planet by the middle of 2022.
Nonetheless, 71.3 percent of the world’s population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, which is still respectable. However, when you add the context that only about 25 percent of low-income countries have received at least one dose of the vaccine, the story starts to get concerning. This is why it is such a shock to many that the board members of Gavi have agreed, in principle, to phase out the initiative by the end of 2023.
This isn’t to say the Vaccine Alliance will neglect the coronavirus; instead, it will start treating it as an illness rather than an emergency health concern. Many experts have kicked out against this move, citing the unpredictability of the coronavirus as a good enough reason to maintain the initiative. And they have a point.
The coronavirus just will not go away, despite the numerous efforts of scientists and vaccine developers. As vaccines drop, the virus just finds a way to make itself better at resisting the vaccine’s protective efforts. Now, you need at least three doses of the vaccine to have a confident level of protection against the coronavirus. Now, consider low-income countries, where 75 percent of people haven’t even gotten one dose.
Despite the agitation of many against the move to phase out the Covax initiative, it is not a totally unsurprising move. The initiative, despite the generous efforts of even the United States and other countries, in helping vaccine donation, is not sustainable. The cost implication is just too high, and unless something drastic happens in terms of finances, it is not expected that the initiative will be able to function past 2024 anyway.
Also, proponents of the move to phase out Covax believe the coronavirus will become a disease we will have to live with rather than one we can eradicate. That’s more than just a belief now, as studies are increasingly suggesting we may have to find how to cope with the coronavirus as we have the flu. In light of this, the initiative is expected to channel its efforts toward finding how low- and middle-income countries can fight the coronavirus independently. In fact, Gavi’s board has approved a plan to help develop vaccine manufacturing companies in different regions of the world.
It’s not all grim, though, regarding the ending of the Covax initiative, as Gavi will be flexible in the event of significant developments over the year. In other words, while the move is agreed, in principle, it can still very much change if something radical happens.
Stay safe.
This article was written by Dr. Adil Manzoor DO, a Board-Certified Internist & Board Eligible Pediatrician, who works as a Hospitalist, and Emergency Room Physician. He is also the current President of Garden State Street Medicine, a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is to provide free preventive and acute urgent care services for the homeless. He is also the co-founder of his own unique medical practice Mobile Medicine NJ.
References
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/07/gavi-covax-phase-out-coronavirus/
- https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/covax-explained
- https://www.unicef.org/supply/covax-ensuring-global-equitable-access-covid-19-vaccines
- https://www.gavi.org/covax-facility
- https://www.who.int/initiatives/act-accelerator/covax
