EU drug regulator to make ruling on Tuesday; India government says all adults to be eligible for vaccine in May as cases skyrocket; US ships vaccines for all overseas workforce
- Indian expansion of Covid vaccine drive may further strain supplies
- What do we know about the Indian coronavirus variant?
- Greta Thunberg condemns vaccine inequality between rich and poor countries
- See all our coronavirus coverage
The US State Department has delivered Covid vaccines to all of its eligible workforce deployed abroad as of Sunday and is expecting its entire workforce to have been fully vaccinated by mid-May, State Department officials said.
Reuters reports that earlier this year, the department came under fire from its staff as it struggled to vaccinate thousands of diplomats stationed in 220 overseas locations, considered a key human resource in advancing America’s national security interests.
In internal cables dated late February, the department’s senior leadership acknowledged supplies were falling short of the demand, the New York Times reported.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during his visit to Japan and South Korea last month, tried to reassure the embassy staff in virtual town halls that the department was working “as fast as it can” to get everyone vaccinated.
As the rollout of the vaccines within the United States accelerated, so did shipments to the State Department, one senior department official said.
“Within three or four weeks, whether they have Pfizer or Moderna, we will be complete with our vaccine program. So I would say easily by mid-May, anybody overseas that wanted a vaccine would be able to get one,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The department is also pressing ahead with its domestic vaccination campaign, but many employees are being inoculated through their states as vaccines become more widely available.
India, home to 1.3 billion people, is battling a worrying surge, with record daily case numbers overwhelming already stretched hospitals and medical supplies, Reuters reports.
Its capital New Delhi was locked down Monday for a week, and the government said all adults would be eligible for a vaccine from May as it tries to get a grip on the spike.
Continue reading...from The Guardian https://ift.tt/3x8YgJB
