U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) forwarded correspondence to three agencies seeking an outline regarding administration plans to vaccinate 70 percent of the world population by September 2022.
Markey and Krishnamoorthi, co-founders of the COVID-19 Global Vaccination Caucus, joined colleagues in sending letters to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) following the Biden administration committing to donate more than 1.1 billion vaccines to low and middle-income countries.
“Ending the global pandemic must remain a top humanitarian and national security objective, especially given the risk that new emerging variants pose,” the lawmakers wrote. The United States has a chance to demonstrate to the world that it can lead this once-in-a-lifetime push to save lives and catalyze the global economy when it matters most.”
The legislators cited estimates detailing an additional four to five billion doses of vaccine must be manufactured, delivered, and administered around the globe to reach the 70 percent goal.
That equates to an estimated 400 million vaccines every month for the next ten months. Additionally, 0.5 percent of doses administered to date have reached low-income countries, and the entire African continent possesses a seven percent vaccination rate.