US Has Donated 110 Million Covid Vaccine Doses Globally
With 110 million doses already donated, involving a lot of logistical planning and coordination, the White House indicated this is just the start of an ongoing push to help vaccinate the world. As President Joe Biden put it, "The virus knows no boundaries."
ABC News:
Millions Of Vaccine Doses Shipped Globally, Biden Announced, As NGOs Call For More
Even as the delta variant is causing higher COVID-19 case rates and hospitalizations across the United States, President Joe Biden continued his push to help get people around the world vaccinated, highlighting in remarks Tuesday that the U.S. has already shipped 110 million doses abroad. "As of today, United States has shipped over 110 million doses of U.S. vaccines to 65 countries that are among the hardest hit in the world," Biden said. (Kolinovsky and Stoddart, 8/3)
The Wall Street Journal:
U.S. Has Shared 110 Million Covid-19 Vaccine Doses Overseas
The figures come about a month behind the White House’s June goal of delivering 80 million doses overseas, part of a greater vaccine-donation drive by the U.S. in the coming months. Mr. Biden marked the vaccine-sharing milestone in remarks from the White House about the status of global vaccination efforts amid growing concerns about the highly contagious Delta variant both at home and abroad. “In the fight against Covid-19, the United States is committed to be the arsenal of vaccines,” Mr. Biden said, emphasizing that all of the doses had been donated with “no favoritism and no strings attached.” (Siddiqui, 8/3)
NPR:
U.S. Leads World With 110 Million COVID Vaccine Donations — And Promises More
These initial U.S. donated doses are just a first step for the projected 11 billion vaccines needed to vaccinate 70% of the world's population and bring the pandemic under control, according to the World Health Organization. And providing doses to other countries is a quasi-Herculean task. "Sharing vaccine doses isn't quite as easy as just putting them on a plane and calling somebody at the other end and telling them when they'll arrive," said Gayle Smith, the global COVID-19 response coordinator at the State Department. (Keith and Stone, 8/3)
CBS News:
Biden Says U.S. Has Sent 110 Million COVID-19 Vaccine Doses Abroad
Mr. Biden marked the milestone in remarks delivered from the White House, during which he also detailed efforts to boost vaccination rates in the U.S., which is experiencing a surge in infections and hospitalizations driven by the highly contagious Delta variant. "We have a pandemic of the unvaccinated," Mr. Biden said, stressing the vaccines' effectiveness in preventing hospitalizations and death due to COVID-19. "This is a tragedy. People are dying and will die who don't have to die." (Quinn, 8/3)
