US to Donate 1 Million Mpox Vaccine Doses and $500 Million to African Countries

President Joe Biden declared that the US will be donating 1 million Mpox vaccine doses and at least $500 million to African countries. He made this announcement in his speech during the United Nations General Assembly, in New York. Biden called on other countries to do so as well.

Mpox is a virus that infects people through physical touching, primarily skin to skin contact. It is normally characterized by ailments such as fever and rash although the occurrence is fatal most of the time. Recently the disease was reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo and it has affected some other countries.

The World Health Organization declared Mpox a global health emergency in August. That is the second time in two years they have done this. Congo’s outbreak originated from a particular strain, but a different version appears more transmissible.

The US official that brought this news stated they would not be shocked to see Mpox cases in the US. Some of them suggested that past budget reductions could lessen the ability of the US to respond to outbreaks.

There are hundreds of millions of vaccine doses sitting in rich countries, all ideal for combating Mpox in Africa. The doses funded by the United States will probably be the Jynneos vaccine produced by Bavarian Nordic. Some of those markets will be supplied by inventories of US products.

The US has said it is donating vaccines to COVAX and expects the organization, which supports funding vaccines for poor nations, to dispense with the vaccines. Gavi last week pledged to purchase half a million doses of the Bavarian Nordic vaccine.

The Biden administration also thirsts for more vaccines to be produced in the poorer countries. They’re in discussion to understand how the G20 of nations may be of any assistance to Brazil on Mpox.

At this moment, none of the African countries can produce the different components that make up the vaccine. Director of the World Health Organisation, Lawrence Gostin opened that Biden was right to support manufacturing of vaccines only in poorer nations. He believes that Biden will have to force drug-makers to part with technology.