Official: U.S. won't donate vaccines to other countries until most Americans are inoculated


While the U.S. is expected to pledge $4 billion to help with global vaccine efforts, the Biden administration will not donate any of the country's doses until most Americans are vaccinated, a senior official told reporters on Thursday.
The official said the U.S. is "focused on American vaccinations and getting shots into arms here" while also "determining the timeline when we will have a sufficient supply in the United States and be able to donate surplus vaccines." On Tuesday, President Biden said he expects every American who wants a vaccine will be able to get one by July.
Worldwide, just 10 countries have administered 75 percent of all vaccines, with 150 countries yet to receive even a single dose. The distribution of vaccines has been "wildly uneven and unfair," United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said Wednesday, and "vaccine equity is the biggest moral test before the global community." French President Emanuel Macron on Thursday called on the U.S. and European nations to donate up to 5 percent of the vaccine doses they have ordered.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Biden is set to announce the $4 billion funding for global vaccine efforts during Friday's Group of 7 virtual meeting. The first $2 billion will be used to purchase vaccine doses for 92 countries, with the rest donated over the next two years to increase vaccine manufacturing and delivery, Politico reports.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
July 5 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include an extrajudicial detainment camp, 'alligator Alcatraz', and tax cuts for billionaires.
-
5 explosively funny cartoons about the 4th of July
Cartoons Artists take on liberty and justice for all, a terrifying firework, and more
-
Jeff in Venice: a "triumph of tackiness"?
In the Spotlight Locals protest as Bezos uses the city as a 'private amusement park' for his wedding celebrations
-
Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, change
Speed Read RFK Jr.'s new vaccine advisory board intends to make changes to the decades-old US immunization system
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kids
Speed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials
-
New FDA chiefs limit Covid-19 shots to elderly, sick
speed read The FDA set stricter approval standards for booster shots
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last year
speed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
-
Trump seeks to cut drug prices via executive order
speed read The president's order tells pharmaceutical companies to lower prescription drug prices, but it will likely be thrown out by the courts
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia