Published by Jeffrey V Lazarus (PRI Faculty), Salim S Abdool Karim, Carolina Batista, Kenneth Rabin, and Ayman El-Mohandes (PRI-Co-Lead)
Since the start of the covid-19 vaccination rollout, repeated concerns have been raised about global vaccine inequity. In an April 2022 commentary in BMJ Global Health, we called specific attention to the importance of minimizing vaccine wastage as a strategy for reducing vaccine inequities. While much of the world now has access to vaccines, both the United Nations’ Data Futures Platform and the World Health Organization maintain that regional access to vaccines and their global uptake remain issues.
Covid-19 persists as a threat to public health despite the desire of many governments to move on from it. In fact, WHO still considers the world to be in the emergency phase of the pandemic. Unfortunately, inequitable access to vaccines remains a challenge, especially in low and middle income countries. Just 24.6% of people in low income countries have received at least one vaccine dose.
Read the full opinion piece at BMJ Global Health.