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Coronaviruses

CDC Recommends COVID-19 Booster Shots for Millions, Millions of Vaccines Distributed Worldwide

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

As the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends COVID-19 booster shots for millions of Americans who received the Moderna or Johnson and Johnson vaccines, the global distribution of COVID-19 vaccines continues to ramp up. The CDC's advisory panel, led by Rochelle Walensky, has approved the recommendations, aligning with the Food and Drug Administration's earlier approval for Pfizer vaccine boosters in September. Meanwhile, the U.S. has successfully distributed 200 million COVID-19 vaccines to over 100 countries, a milestone touted by the White House as fulfilling President Joe Biden's promise to become the world's vaccine arsenal.

Key Takeaways:

  • The CDC recommends COVID-19 booster shots for millions of Americans who received the Moderna or Johnson and Johnson vaccines, with those 65 or older and those 18 or older in long-term care facilities, with pre-existing medical conditions, or working in high-risk settings eligible for booster shots.
  • The U.S. has distributed 200 million COVID-19 vaccines to over 100 countries, a move the White House says fulfills President Biden's promise to become the world's vaccine arsenal.
  • An analysis by the People's Vaccine Alliance shows that of the 1.8 billion doses pledged by the world's richest nations, 261 million, or 14%, have arrived in low-income nations, with 120 million of the 994 million doses promised by vaccine developers AstraZeneca, Johnson and Johnson, Moderna, and Pfizer/BioNTech delivered to COVAX.
  • The shortage of vaccines in low-income nations has resulted in only 1.3% of people being fully vaccinated against the disease caused by the coronavirus.
  • Researchers are keeping a close eye on the AY.4.2 subvariant, a mutation of the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus, but have not determined if it poses a significant risk of being more contagious than the original version.

Statistics:

  • 200 million COVID-19 vaccines distributed to over 100 countries worldwide
  • 261 million, or 14%, of 1.8 billion doses pledged by the world's richest nations have arrived in low-income nations
  • 120 million, or 12%, of 994 million doses promised by vaccine developers AstraZeneca, Johnson and Johnson, Moderna, and Pfizer/BioNTech have been delivered to COVAX
  • 1.3% of people living in the world's poorest nations are fully vaccinated against the disease caused by the coronavirus
  • 52,000 new COVID-19 infections reported in Britain on Thursday, with a daily average of over 44,000 for the past week

Sources:

  • Voice of America (VOA)
  • CDC
  • White House
  • People's Vaccine Alliance
  • World Health Organization (WHO)
  • BBC News (Britain's Health Ministry)
  • Oxfam
  • Amnesty International
  • AstraZeneca
  • Johnson and Johnson
  • Moderna
  • Pfizer/BioNTech
  • COVAX

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