Global Health Seminar Series 2021-22
Wednesday, October 20, 2021 | 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
As we near our second year of a historic global pandemic, only 20% of people living in low- and lower-middle-income countries—who constitute most of the world’s population—have receive at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. By contrast, 80% of people living in upper-middle- and high-income countries have received at least one vaccine dose. More than two decades after the global HIV epidemic raised foundational questions about inequity in access to essential medicines, these stark disparities in vaccine access underscore our lack of progress as a global community.
In this event, our speakers will address critical questions regarding the path forward in the current crisis, including: What is the state of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)? What are the legal and technical barriers preventing LMICs from not just being recipients of vaccines, but also from producing these vaccines for themselves? How can high-income countries ensure open access and transfer of intellectual knowledge so everyone can produce these vaccines? What should individuals in the U.S. be doing to advance global vaccine equity?