In the fall of 2020, we finally got the news that a vaccine will be coming out for COVID-19! Finally, after an entire year of COVID, it will all be over soon. Although it sounds so amazing, vaccinating the whole world has proven to be very difficult. It has been difficult to be able to ship the vaccine all over the world too. Vaccines also cost money, so wealthier countries are getting it way earlier than poorer countries. Towards the beginning of COVID, wealthier countries made sure that once the US came out with the vaccine, they would get it first. Many nations even helped to pay for the materials if they could be first in line fr the first doses. As COVID continued, wealthy countries kept buying more and more doses, and since they didn’t know if they would work the first time they bought more and more. In June 2020, the World Health Organization launched a program call COVAX. This helped to make sure that the vaccine was being evenly distributed and not just given to the wealthier nations. There is also another problem that has come up with the vaccine, supply. Since the vaccine is so popular right now, the supply of it is running very low. This has caused many countries to have to compete to get the vaccine. Many wealthier countries are having trouble making appointments to get the vaccine because supply is so limited. Some wealthy countries have said that they can donate vaccines to developing countries. Some researchers say it could be years to get the whole world vaccinated, so it may be a while till any country can donate anything. The US has been able to give the vaccine to a quarter of the population, while some countries are just getting started. Health experts really want to get as many people as they can be vaccinated before a bunch of new strains of COVID come. If it takes too long, the vaccine may stop being effective after a while. Many experts say that widespread immunizations are the only way that COVID can be stopped.
If you were given the chance to get vaccinated, would you? And why?
Do you have any other ideas of how to distribute the vaccine more fairly? If so what are they?
What is your opinion on wealthier countries getting the vaccine first? Do you think this is good or bad?
Hi Kaylie,
This is definitely an important article and such a fascinating scientific break through that a year ago we could only dream about. I got the vaccine and am thrilled to be able to do so.
Mrs. S