COVID-19 Vaccination: The Barriers to Achieving Global Herd Immunity

COVID-19 vaccinations are key to overcoming the pandemic, says the World Health Organizations (WHO). The UN agency has approved the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use, which is a prerequisite for inclusion in the global vaccine solidarity initiative, COVAX. Credit: Unsplash/Ivan Diaz via UN NewsBy Sunil J. WimalawansaNEW JERSEY, USA, May 17 2021 (IPS) The global community is conducting a rapid vaccination program against the SARS.Cov-2 virus, using several vaccines, authorised for emergency use. To date, the percentages of adults vaccinated vary between less than 2% to over 90% in different countries. Vast socio-economic variation is primarily responsible for this disparity. Moreover, while the industrialised countries have secured more than adequate COVID vaccines, the middle- and low-income countries (MLIC) are significantly lagging. Globally, the vaccination rate is slowing down, scarcity in some countries and refusal in others. At the current rate of vaccination, less than half of adults in MLIC countries will be vaccinated by the end of 2021. Therefore, the focus of WHO and MLIC countries must be directed to improving this grim situation. Concerns about achieving herd immunity The increasing virulence of new mutations (i.e., variants) of SARS-CoV-2 [i.e., increasing reproductive number (R0)] increased R0 from original SARS.Cov-2higher infectivity, and the human behaviour, achieving a global herd immunity needs vaccinating approximately 85% of adults, in t...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Featured Global Headlines Health Human Rights Humanitarian Emergencies Sustainability TerraViva United Nations Source Type: news