The United States has now donated 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to more than 100 countries and territories, making it the largest donor in the world, the White House announced.
Those donations include more than 120 million surplus doses from the U.S. stockpile, along with initial deliveries of 1 billion doses the federal government has bought from Pfizer for donation to other countries by September 2022, the Associated Press reports.
“These 200 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have helped bring health and hope to millions of people, but our work is far from over,” U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Samantha Power says in a statement.
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“To end the pandemic, and prevent the emergence of new variants, as well as future outbreaks within our nation’s borders, we must continue to do our part to help vaccinate the world.”
While the U.S. vaccine donations have been welcomed by aid groups, those groups have also criticized the approval of booster doses in this
country while many people in lower-income nations have yet to receive a first shot.
The Biden administration aims to lead a global vaccination campaign while it also rolls out boosters for domestic use, which critics say may divert those who are in greater need around the world from getting doses.
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“The reality is, the more wealthy countries use booster shots, the further we will be from ending the pandemic,” Tom Hart, acting CEO of the One Campaign, tells the AP.
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“While some argue that we can both administer boosters and vaccinate the world, the simple fact is that boosters divert supply from an urgent area of need — administering first shots around the world.”
On Wednesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved booster shots of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines, following last month’s authorization of a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine.
For more information about what to expect after getting vaccinated and where vaccines are available, visit the CDC.
