The UK has booked more than 500 million doses and the US has stocked enough to vaccinate 750 million people. The British Prime Minister expects the G7 to make a promise
Developed countries, please share your spare new crown vaccine
The British government said in a statement on the 5th that Prime Minister Boris Johnson will call on the leaders of the Group of Seven nations at the summit this month to make a commitment to achieve the global goal of completing the new crown vaccination before the end of 2022.
The G7 includes the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, and Japan. The United Kingdom is the rotating presidency this year. The G7 leaders summit is scheduled to be held in Cornwall, England on the 11th. Johnson will host the first face-to-face meeting of G7 leaders in nearly two years.
Johnson said in the statement: “I call on the leaders of the Group of Seven countries to work with us to end this terrible epidemic and promise that we will not allow the damage caused by the new crown virus to happen again.”
At present, a large number of people in developed countries have been vaccinated, while many developing countries have difficulty obtaining vaccines. How to ensure a more equitable distribution of vaccines on a global scale is facing challenges. Public health experts warned that unless developed countries are willing to donate more vaccines, the new coronavirus will continue to spread around the world.
After two days of discussions, the health ministers of the Group of Seven countries agreed to speed up cooperation on vaccines and treatment trials to deal with the new coronavirus and possible outbreaks in the future, and work together to promote the mutual certification of new coronavirus test results and vaccination. However, this meeting did not make a breakthrough in promoting the equitable distribution of vaccines. The health ministers of the Group of Seven countries only reiterated their previous commitments to share vaccines with developing countries “as soon as possible” through the “New Coronary Pneumonia Vaccine Implementation Plan” (COVAX), a global acquisition mechanism for new crown vaccines led by the World Health Organization.
The global supply of vaccines continues to be tight. Many countries and regions have a serious shortage of vaccines. The total amount of vaccines stocked in some developed countries far exceeds domestic demand.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said at the G7 finance ministers meeting held on the 4th that it is a top priority for rich countries to help poor countries that cannot afford vaccines to increase vaccination rates. The United States will help those countries solve their supply chain problems.
The US “Washington Post” reported that the total number of new crown vaccines hoarded by the US government is enough to vaccinate 750 million people, while the current adult population of the US is about 260 million. Facing the pressure of public opinion, the US government announced on the 3rd that it will provide 25 million doses of surplus new crown vaccine to other countries and will relax export restrictions on vaccine raw materials.
The population of the UK is approximately 67 million. The British government has ordered more than 500 million doses of the new crown vaccine, and there will still be a large number of surplus vaccines after the domestic vaccination is completed. According to the statement of the British government, Johnson will announce specific plans for the UK to share vaccines with other countries in the next few days.
Many countries and international organizations have recently called on developed countries to share vaccines. The leaders of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund issued a joint statement on the 3rd, calling on the G7 member countries to donate their surplus vaccines to developing countries as soon as possible. UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore urged the Group of Seven countries to provide emergency surplus vaccines to the “New Coronary Pneumonia Vaccine Implementation Plan” on May 16 to make up for the vaccine shortage faced by this mechanism.
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U.S. urges young people to get the new crown vaccine
CNN reported on the 5th that the progress of the new crown vaccination in the United States has shown signs of slowing down recently. The media expects that at the current pace, the United States may not be able to achieve the goals set by President Joseph Biden.
Biden announced in early May that it intends to vaccinate 70% of American adults with at least one dose before the July 4 Independence Day holiday, and approximately 160 million people will be vaccinated. According to CDC data, as of June 4, approximately 63.2% of American adults had received at least one dose of the vaccine, and approximately 137.5 million Americans had completed the vaccination.
Cable News Network analyzes the CDC data and predicts that if it advances at the current speed, the United States may not be able to achieve the goals set by Biden.
According to data from Johns Hopkins University in the United States, the United States has an average of 14,300 new confirmed cases in a single day in the past week. This number was 71,300 in mid-April and exceeded 250,000 in early January.
On the 4th, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Roselle Volensky urged parents to vaccinate young people at home as soon as possible.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that between March 1, 2020 and April 30 this year, approximately 1.5 million teenagers between the ages of 11 and 17 in the United States were infected with the new crown virus. Researchers also found that from October 1 last year to April 24 this year, the hospitalization rate of adolescent patients with new crown was 2.5 to 3 times that of adolescent seasonal influenza hospitalization.
Andrew Pavia, Professor of Pediatrics and Infectious Diseases at the University of Utah, said: “Influenza rarely causes long-term symptoms or organ failure, but the new crown is different. There are many reasons why young people should get the new crown vaccine as soon as possible, including beneficial and helpful for their health. Control the epidemic among susceptible people and let everyone return to normal life as soon as possible.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved in May that the new crown vaccine jointly developed by Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. and the German Biotech Company can be used for emergency use in people aged 12 to 15.
This group of articles/Xinhua News Agency
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