If you were in power, what would you do to end the global pandemic?

Would you try everything possible to maximize vaccine production?

Of course, you would.

So would I.

Sadly, many in power don’t think like we do.

They are instead throttling vaccine production globally.

The EU, UK, US & other governments are blocking wider vaccine production globally by obstructing the #TRIPSwaiver - a proposal at the WTO to temporarily waive some intellectual property rules for medical products.

The result has been predictable: global vaccine shortages.

The current vaccine rollout is hugely uneven globally.

83% of shots that have gone into arms worldwide have been administered in high- & upper-middle-income countries.

Only 0.2% in low-income countries.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-vaccinations-tracker.html

The current vaccine rollout is also going too slowly.

After 4-5 months, only 3% of the world population has been gully vaccinated.

Experts estimate we need at least 70% to reach herd immunity.

At this pace, it will take years...

https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-people-fully-vaccinated-covid?tab=chart&country=~OWID_WRL

And "years" is not something we have.

The longer the global pandemic is allowed to continue, the greater the risk to all of us.

https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/two-thirds-epidemiologists-warn-mutations-could-render-current-covid-vaccines

By blocking wider production of vaccines globally, the EU, UK, US & others are prolonging the global pandemic, meaning:

more death;

more economic disruption;

more chance for new variants to emerge that are more virulent, more deadly and/or resistant to current jabs

Rich govts & drug companies know the rollout is going too slowly to meet global need.

As they talk about "3rd shot" boosters - which will deepen the fight over short supplies - they also mention needing modified & new vaccines to combat new variants.
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/15/pfizer-ceo-says-third-covid-vaccine-dose-likely-needed-within-12-months.html

New shots may be needed for new variants…

But there's not capacity to produce so many shots that quickly globally.

So, billions will never get the latest jab & be a source of newer variants…

And then we'll need newer shots for newer variants…

As more & more of us die…

This is the world they are creating, but ask yourself:

Who benefits here?

Not the millions of us who will get sick and die because of the vaccine scarcity they are enforcing on us, that's for sure.

Not the billions of us who will suffer from continued economic disruption.

Experts worldwide warned that, with limited supplies, vaccines would not become a global public good if rich countries were able to monopolize or dominate available doses only for themselves.

Sadly, that is exactly what happened.

And it harms us all.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/03/04/reinforcing-rights-can-help-avert-failure-covid-19-vaccines

But we can change this deadly policy.

Our governments have departed from our values & are endangering our lives.

We know this is outrageous, and we have to get them to prioritize human life over pharma profits.