COVAX global Covid vaccine program secures nearly 2 billion doses as UNICEF prepares for distribution

COVAX global Covid vaccine program secures nearly 2 billion doses as UNICEF prepares for distribution

A pharmacist prepares a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at UCI Medical Center in Orange, California, U.S., on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020.Bing Guan| Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe global alliance aiming to provide poor nations with coronavirus vaccines said Friday it has supply agreements to provide nearly 2 billion doses and could begin shipping them out in the first quarter once approved.There are 190 countries and territories participating in COVAX, which is co-led by the World Health Organization, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation. The facility said it was able to secure the doses through additional supply agreements with AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.COVAX said it's planning for initial deliveries to begin in the first quarter of 2021 if the drugs are approved. There should be enough doses delivered in the first half of next year to protect health and social care workers in the participating economies, the alliance said. COVAX plans to deliver at least 1.3 billion doses to the 92 countries, which are all low- and lower-middle-income, participating in the facility by some point next year."The arrival of vaccines is giving all of us a glimpse of the light at the end of