The Biden administration took a modest first step toward sharing coronavirus vaccines with the world on Thursday, announcing plans to send 1.5 million doses of AstraZeneca to Canada and 2.5 million to Mexico.
Why does it matter: The vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University has not been approved in the US, and the White House has faced growing criticism for staying on doses that could be used elsewhere.
- The deal comes in the form of a loan, with the US sending doses to Canada and Mexico now with the expectation that they will return doses to the US later this year.
The whole picture: The world has four major sources of coronavirus vaccines: China (33% of all doses produced), the United States (27%), the EU (19%) and India (13%), according to data shared with Axios by Airfinity, a scientific information and analysis.
- While China exported about 60% of the vaccines it produced – partly due to low sense of urgency in China, where the virus is largely under control – the US exported 0%, concentrating instead on the coverage of all US adults.
- India has so far exported 65% of its production on Airfinity, but the CEO of the country’s largest producer said last month that it had been “directed to prioritize India’s huge needs”.
- EU has vigorous debate over tighter export controls, lamenting what it sees as an imbalance with the US and Britain