Peter Figueroa, Professor of Public Health - Gleaner file photo
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Professor Peter Figueroa
A health official in Jamaica says the COVID-19 vaccine sharing plan announced on Thursday by US President Joe Biden will have little effect in easing the global shortage of the medication.
Professor of Public Health Peter Figueroa, who is also a member of the World Health Organization Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on COVID-19 vaccines, welcomed the plan but described it as a drop in the bucket.
"Because right now there is a significant shortage of authorised vaccine that is available to low and middle income countries. So this gesture is very positive but it still is really a very small amount of what is needed to get the entire world vaccinated," he said.
He noted that 56 per cent of people who have already been vaccinated worldwide are from rich or high income countries.
Of the first tranche of 25 million vaccine doses being shared by the US, about 19 million will go to COVAX.
Latin America and Caribbean will receive six million doses.
White House National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, said several factors were considered in allocating doses to the various regions. Some of these include achieving global coverage, responding to surges, helping as many countries as possible who requested vaccines, and prioritising neighbouring countries.
National Health Fund (NHF) Chairman Howard Mitchell, who has been leading Jamaica's effort to source COVID-19 vaccines on the global market, said it is still unclear how many doses each country will receive.
The vaccine sharing plan comes as demand for the COVID-19 medication in the US has dropped significantly as more than 63 per cent of adults have received at least one dose, and as global inequities in supply have become more glaring.
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