Updated May 13, 2021 at 10:55 a.m. ET
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US surgeon General Vivek Murthy said the world was in a race to stop Covid-19 variants like the one found in India. A temporary waiver of intellectual property rights for vaccines is a step in increasing supply and booster vaccinations may also be required.
Dr. Murthy said during the Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival that the three vaccines used in the US have so far been shown to be effective against serious infections and deaths when it comes to variants like the more transmissible variant B.1.1.7, which is the first time identified in the UK but said further research is needed to determine the level of protection these vaccines offer against B.1.617, which is native to India and has been classified as a global « variant of concern » this week by the World Health Organization / p> A look at how innovation and technology are changing the way we live, work and play.
« We’re in a race against these variants, » he said, « and right now it’s really about vaccines against variants. The faster we can get people vaccinated, the more we will lower the infection rates and the fewer variants we will get Eventually develop. «
Dr. Murthy said a temporary waiver of intellectual property regulations that allow developing countries to manufacture Covid-19 vaccines is one way to have the necessary supply and distribution system in place, to vaccinate people around the world The Biden administration said last week it would support a proposal for such a waiver that finds its way through the World Trade Organization, causing some setbacks from European Union leaders and Republicans in Washington .
Dr. Murthy said he didn’t think a waiver would deter companies from making vaccines for a future pandemic to develop. « They know these markets will be robust, they will be there for them in the future. » But I think they also realize that there are moments like this when we all need to be stepped up, whether we’re governments, corporations or individuals, ”he said.
Even if the waiver is issued, some have Officials said it could take months for manufacturers to produce their first cans.
« We are currently facing a global manufacturing capacity challenge, » said Dr. Murthy. « We have to scale that fast, and this is a place where markets sometimes fail because a single company may not necessarily see the financial worth of increasing production for the world for this pandemic, after which you may be left idle in production capacity. »
Dr. Murthy said US public health officials are unsure whether people who have been vaccinated may need a booster.
« It depends in part on how long immunity to the vaccine lasts, » he said, adding that the spread of variants « that are not as susceptible to the protection we have in the vaccine » may also require a booster.
Pfizer Inc.
published results of a study last month that showed his vaccine with
BioNTech SE
was highly effective six months after his second dose. The company hopes to provide more protection information beyond six months and plans to continue monitoring the subjects for two years.
In the United States, according to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 154 million people, or 58.7% of the adult population, received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. President Biden’s goal is to deliver at least one dose to 70% of the adult population by July 4th.
As more Americans get vaccinated, public health officials have been criticized for being too cautious in their guidelines when people can stop taking pandemic precautions. Dr. Murthy said it was healthy to have this debate.
« I think one of the points that is being highlighted in this debate is that science is not black and white, » he said. « And these recommendations are often judgments that need to be grayed out and different people disagree on where to go. »
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Corrections & reinforcements
Dr. Vivek Murthy is the US surgeon general. In a previous version of this article, his last name was misspelled as Murphy in the heading. (Corrected May 13th)
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