With the deadly Delta variant on the rise, wealthy nations are in the process of implementing so-called “booster plans” which would allow their citizens to receive a third dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. However, these plans have been widely criticised as millions of people living in poorer countries are still desperately waiting for their first jab. Since global Covid-19 infection rates are skyrocketing, an ethical and scientific debate has erupted over whether a third vaccine dose is actually necessary for increased protection or whether a more equal vaccine distribution should be prioritised.

THE VIEWPOINT FROM WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) has reacted swiftly to such plans, urging wealthy countries to halt their vaccine booster programmes to ensure that every country in the world can vaccinate at least 10 percent of its population by the end of September. Director General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus stated; “we cannot accept countries that have already used most of the global supply of vaccines using even more of it”.

WHO has acknowledged that the vaccine gap between rich and poor countries is widening at a worrying rate. It found that richer countries administered around 50 doses for every 100 people in May, and that number has doubled since then. This drastically differs from that of poorer countries who were only able to administer 1.5 doses for every 100 people due to lack of supply.

Africa is lagging far behind other continents with only two percent of its entire population of 1.3 billion people fully vaccinated against the virus. Despite recent increases in vaccine imports, African countries are still not receiving nearly enough vaccines to combat their health crisis. “As some richer countries hoard vaccines, they make a mockery of vaccine equity,” stated Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.

Dr Tedros urged that “we need an urgent reversal, from the majority of vaccines going to high-income countries, to the majority going to low-income countries". His plea to nations comes at a time when global cases are nearing 200 million. Currently, the global death toll from the coronavirus has surpassed four million.

THE RACE FOR BOOSTER PLANS

Despite WHO’s concerns, many rich countries are going ahead with booster plans. Israel, which launched one of the world’s most successful vaccination drives, is now also the first country to offer a third dose of the vaccine to its citizens. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has allowed Israelis over the age of 40 to become eligible for a third vaccine shot.

French President Emmanuel Macron said France was planning on rolling out third doses of the vaccine to the elderly as well as vulnerable persons from as early as September. Germany plans to implement booster shots against the coronavirus for both elderly and vulnerable persons from 1 September, as concerns grow about the spread of the Delta variant.

Britain plans to offer Covid-19 booster vaccines to 32 million Britons starting in September with up to 2,000 pharmacies set up to deliver the third dose, according to The Telegraph. The Biden administration has also set up plans to administer booster doses of the vaccine in an effort to stay ahead of the deadly virus, which will allow Americans to receive the third jab from 20 September.

As more wealthy countries push towards implementing these plans, this has ultimately set in motion a race for booster plans. For more information on other countries who have adopted similar measures, click here.

AN INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUE

Although scientists were able to develop a variety of vaccines at unprecedented speed, the combined actions of the world’s wealthiest governments as well as major pharmaceutical corporations have threatened poorer nation’s right to universal and affordable access to those vaccines.

Wealthy governments have spent tens of billions of dollars on vaccine development, but have so far failed to collaborate and share the advantages of scientific research globally. Instead than using their funding to guarantee vaccination availability and affordability, powerful countries negotiated bilateral deals with pharmaceutical companies or other groups to ensure they could profit from it. They also hoarded vaccination doses largely for their own populations and reversed deals which focused on a more equitable distribute to the global community. 

When negotiating international agreements or participating in decisions as members of international organisations, states are required by international human rights law to refrain from activities that obstruct other governments' efforts to comply with their human rights commitments. However, this has been far from the case when wealthy governments obstruct vaccine availability either by purchasing more vaccines than is necessary or by blocking intellectual property waivers at the World Trade Organization, which would have allowed for faster vaccine manufacturing and distribution.

Instead of focusing on delivering more vaccines around the world, wealthy governments are now exacerbating vaccine shortages and disparities by preparing to use another billion doses as boosters. Mike Ryan, Director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Program, has described wealthy nation’s vaccine booster plans as immoral. He stated that “we’re planning to hand out extra life jackets to people who already have life jackets, while we’re leaving other people to drown without a single lifejacket”.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, it is clear that poorer countries have been denied a sense of fairness and justice. Without a more equal distribution of vaccines, Covid will continue to increase global inequality. Inequitable access of Covid-19 vaccinations threatens the human rights of millions of people and must be remedied by the joint actions of wealthy nations and pharmaceutical companies. If this problem is not addressed immediately, it will have catastrophic consequences for the entire world.

Calvin dos Santos is in second year of LLB European Law School (ELS) at the University of Maastricht. His main areas of interest are human rights and environmental law, but he is also very interested in aspects of cyber law (such as privacy and data protection).

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