Biden administration announces plan to share 55 million Covid-19 doses abroad

The Biden administration on Monday is releasing its plan for allocating an additional 55 million Covid vaccines globally by the end of this month. Roughly 75% of the doses will be shared through the COVAX global vaccine program, with the remaining 25% shared with countries with regional priorities and other considerations.

As CNN reported, the administration will be distributing 55 million doses of Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, and Pfizer’s vaccines abroad, most of which will be J&J and Moderna. As of Monday, the 55 million AstraZeneca doses are still not cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration for safety and efficacy review yet. 

Approximately 41 million of the 55 million doses will be shared through COVAX, with 14 million for Latin American and Caribbean countries, 16 million for Asia, 10 million for Africa.

The remaining approximately 14 million doses “will be shared with regional priorities and other recipients, such as: Colombia, Argentina, Haiti, other CARICOM countries, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Panama, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Cabo Verde, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Yemen, Tunisia, Oman, West Bank and Gaza, Ukraine, Kosovo, Georgia, Moldova, and Bosnia.” 

The White House said in a statement that the vaccines will be distributed “as expeditiously as possible,” noting that the process “will take time” due to regulatory and legal transport requirements.

The doses, the White House said, should be prioritized for “those most at risk, such as health care workers, should be prioritized, based on national vaccine plans.” The White House will be announcing which vaccines will go to which country once they are shipped out.