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President Joe Biden turned to his old boss, former President Barack Obama, on Saturday to help him encourage Americans to sign up for “Obamacare” health care coverage during an expanded special enrollment period in the pandemic.Biden used his weekly address for a brief Zoom chat with Obama to draw attention to the six-month expanded enrollment period that closes August 15.Meanwhile, the government released a report that nearly 31 million Americans — a record — now have health coverage through the Affordable Care Act.”We did this together,” said Obama, whose administration established the health insurance marketplace. “We always talked about how, if we could get the principle of universal coverage established, we could then build on it.”The White House effort to spotlight the expanded enrollment and claim strong numbers for the health law came as the political world and the health care system await a Supreme Court ruling on the law’s constitutionality. The Zoom call was recorded Friday afternoon and released Saturday as Biden’s weekly address.The Health and Human Services Department said in a report that nearly 31 million had obtained coverage in 2021 as a result of the law. That’s considerably higher than the more than 20 million estimate that’s commonly cited.The Biden administration launched a special sign-up period during the pandemic, and Congress passed a big boost in subsidies for private health plans sold under the law. But that alone doesn’t explain the increased coverage.The numbersThe report says 11.3 million people are covered through the health law’s marketplaces, where subsidized private plans are offered. An additional 14.8 million are covered through expanded Medicaid, the report adds. All but a dozen states have accepted the law’s Medicaid expansion, which mainly serves low-income working adults. And 1 million are covered by so-called basic health plans, an option created by the law and offered in a limited number of states.That accounts for enrollment of about 27 million people. But the Biden administration is also claiming credit for 4 million people who would have been eligible for Medicaid without Obama’s law.Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, said the law broke down barriers to enrollment among those who were already eligible by simplifying applications and increasing awareness. He also pointed to the establishment of community-based navigators tasked with helping newly eligible people find coverage and conducting outreach to those who were already eligible but didn’t necessarily know it.”It didn’t require a sweeping law like the ACA to get people who were already eligible for Medicaid enrolled, but the provisions of the ACA did help to get these millions of people covered,” Levitt said.States’ challengeThe Supreme Court is soon expected to rule on a challenge to the health law from Texas and other GOP-led states. They argue that because Congress has eliminated the law’s penalty for being uninsured, a now-toothless ACA requirement that almost all Americans must have health insurance is unconstitutional and therefore the law should fail.Those defending the law say that even if the Supreme Court strikes down the coverage requirement, there’s no reason to tamper with the rest of the law.The White House says 1.2 million people have signed up for health insurance through the government marketplace during the special enrollment period that began in February. That number includes people who would have qualified for a sign-up opportunity even without Biden’s special enrollment period.A life change such as losing workplace coverage or getting married is considered a “qualifying life event” that allows people to sign up any time during the year. Last year about 390,000 people signed up because of life changes from February 15 to April 30, the government said.Biden, in the conversation with Obama, spoke about the 2015 death of his son Beau Biden from cancer.”I literally remember sitting on the bed with him within a week or so him passing away,” Biden said, “and thinking, ‘What in God’s name would I do if I got a notice from the insurance company saying you’ve outrun your coverage?’ ” 
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China’s Guangzhou city, a port city of more than 13 million people, on Saturday ordered more restrictions due to a rise in COVID-19 cases that began in late May.Of the 24 new cases of COVID-19 reported in China on Saturday, 11 were transmitted in Guangzhou province, where the city is located.Authorities had imposed restrictions earlier in the week but sought additional limits on business and social activities. Authorities closed about a dozen subway stops, and the city’s Nansha district ordered restaurants to stop dine-in services and public venues, such as gyms, to temporarily close.Officials in the districts of Nansha, Huadu and Conghua ordered all residents and any individuals who have traveled through their regions to be tested for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, Reuters reported.Also, Sinovac Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for emergency use for young people between the ages of 3 and 17, the company’s chairman, Yin Weidong, said on state television Friday. China’s current vaccination program is restricted to those 18 and older.As Afghanistan attempts to beat back a surge in COVID-19 cases, it has received the news that the 3 million doses of vaccines it was expecting from the World Health Organization in April will not arrive until August, according to the Associated Press.Afghan health ministry spokesman Ghulam Dastagir Nazari told AP that he has approached several embassies for help but has not received any vaccines. “We are in the middle of a crisis,” he said.On Saturday, India’s health ministry reported 120,529 new COVID-19 cases in the previous 24 hours period, the lowest daily count of new infections in 58 days. More than 3,000 deaths were also recorded.Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency Friday approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds.The decision follows similar approvals by U.S. and European Union regulators.Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reported early Saturday more than 172 million global COVID infections. The U.S. has the most cases with 33.3 million, followed by India with 28.7 million and Brazil with nearly 17 million.
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Chinese state media report that scientists are developing an inhalable, fine-mist COVID-19 vaccine. The Chinese Food and Drug Administration has approved the vaccine for expanded clinical trials and is applying for emergency use of the vaccine.Also in China, Sinovac Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for emergency use for young people between the ages of 3 and 17, the company’s chairman, Yin Weidong, said on state television Friday. China’s current vaccination program is restricted to those 18 and older.As Afghanistan attempts to beat back a surge in COVID cases, it has received the news that the 3 million doses of vaccines it was expecting from the World Health Organization in April will not arrive until August, according to the Associated Press.Afghan health ministry spokesperson Ghulam Dastigir Nazari told AP that he has approached several embassies for help but has not received any vaccines.  “We are in the middle of a crisis,” he said.On Saturday, India’s health ministry reported 120,529 new COVID-19 cases in the previous 24-hours period, the lowest daily count of new infections in 58 days. More than 3,000 deaths were also recorded.Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency Friday approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds.The decision follows similar approvals by U.S. and European Union regulators.British Health Secretary Matt Hancock welcomed the news Friday and said he will wait for clinical advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization regarding how the vaccine should be administered. He said Britain should have enough supply of the vaccine to inoculate the nation’s adolescents.Meanwhile, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky on Friday urged parents of adolescents in the United States to get their children vaccinated as soon as possible, following the release of a CDC report showing a spike in hospitalizations among 12- to 17-year-olds between January and April.The study indicated one-third of those hospitalizations were intensive care patients and 5% of those patients had to be put on ventilators. Walensky said the figures saddened her and show that even young patients can get seriously ill from the virus that causes COVID-19.Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reported early Saturday more than 172 million global COVID infections. The U.S. has the most cases with 33.3 million, followed by India with 28.7 million and Brazil with nearly 17 million.  
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Regulators on Friday said a new version of a popular diabetes medicine could be sold as a weight-loss drug in the U.S. The Food and Drug Administration approved Wegovy, a higher-dose version of Novo Nordisk’s diabetes drug semaglutide, for long-term weight management.  In company-funded studies, participants taking Wegovy had average weight loss of 15%, about 34 pounds (15.3 kilograms). Participants lost weight steadily for 16 months before plateauing. In a comparison group getting dummy shots, the average weight loss was about 2.5%, or just under 6 pounds. “With existing drugs, you’re going to get maybe 5% to 10% weight reduction, sometimes not even that,” said Dr. Harold Bays, medical director of the Louisville Metabolic and Atherosclerosis Research Center. Bays, who is also the Obesity Medicine Association’s chief science officer, helped run studies of the drug.  In the U.S., more than 100 million adults — about 1 in 3 — are obese. Dropping even 5% of one’s weight can bring health benefits, such as improved energy, blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels, but that amount often doesn’t satisfy patients who are focused on weight loss, Bays said. Bays said Wegovy appears far safer than earlier obesity drugs that “have gone down in flames” over safety problems. Wegovy’s most common side effects were gastrointestinal problems, including nausea, diarrhea and vomiting. Those usually subsided, but led about 5% of study participants to stop taking it. The drug carries a potential risk for a type of thyroid tumor, so it shouldn’t be taken by people with a personal or family history of certain thyroid and endocrine tumors. Wegovy also has a risk of depression and pancreas inflammation. Wegovy (pronounced wee-GOH’-vee) is a synthesized version of a gut hormone that curbs appetite. Patients inject it weekly under their skin. Like other weight-loss drugs, it’s to be used along with exercise, a healthy diet and other steps like keeping a food diary. The Danish company hasn’t disclosed Wegovy’s price but said it will be similar to the price of Saxenda, an 11-year-old weight loss drug injected daily that now typically costs more than $1,300 per month without insurance. Dr. Archana Sudhu, head of the diabetes program at Houston Methodist Hospital, said Wegovy’s usefulness “all depends on what the price will be.” She noted patients’ health insurance plans sometime don’t cover weight-loss treatments, putting expensive drugs out of reach. Sudhu, who has no connection to Novo Nordisk, plans to switch patients who are obese and have Type 2 diabetes to Wegovy. It makes patients feel full sooner and increases release of insulin from the pancreas to control blood sugar, she said. Patients would then be more likely to get motivated to exercise and eat healthier, she added. Wegovy builds on a trend in which makers of relatively new diabetes drugs test them to treat other conditions common in diabetics. For example, popular diabetes drugs Jardiance and Novo Nordisk’s Victoza now have approvals for reducing risk of heart attack, stroke and death in heart patients. Phylander Pannell, 49, of Largo, Maryland, joined a patient study after cycles of losing and then regaining weight. She said she received Wegovy, worked out several times a week and lost 65 pounds over 16 months.  “It helped curb my appetite and it helped me feel full faster,” said Pannell. “It got me on the right path.” Shortly after she finished the study and stopped receiving Wegovy, she regained about half the weight. She’s since lost much of that, started exercise classes and bought home exercise equipment. She’s considering going back on Wegovy after it’s approved. Novo Nordisk also is developing a pill version. 
 
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The United Nations is marking World Environment Day with the launch of a decade dedicated to restoring the Earth’s ecosystem, which is rapidly approaching “the point of no return,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Friday.“Science tells us these next 10 years are our final chance to avert a climate catastrophe, turn back the deadly tide of pollution and end species loss,” Guterres said in a video address, a day ahead of the international day intended to raise environmental awareness and protection.”So, let today be the start of a new decade – one in which we finally make peace with nature and secure a better future for all,” he said.Guterres said the world faces a “triple environmental emergency”: biodiversity loss, climate disruption and increasing pollution.“The degradation of the natural world is already undermining the well-being of 3.2 billion people – or 40% of humanity,” he warned.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline.Download File360p | 7 MB480p | 10 MB540p | 14 MB720p | 27 MB1080p | 59 MBOriginal | 57 MB Embed” />Copy Download AudioEarth’s ecosystem is rapidly approaching “the point of no return,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says June 4, 2021, a day ahead of World Environment Day.The U.N. secretary-general blamed human behavior, including deforestation, the polluting of rivers and oceans, and unsustainable agriculture practices for contributing to the planet’s poor health.“Luckily, the Earth is resilient,” he said.To reverse the damage, he said, societies need to start replanting forests, cleaning up rivers and seas, and greening cities.“Accomplishing these things will not only safeguard the planet’s resources,” Guterres said. “It will create millions of new jobs by 2030, generate returns of over $7 trillion every year and help eliminate poverty and hunger.”He acknowledged that the job ahead would be  “monumental” and called on governments, the private sector, civil society and ordinary citizens to do their share in this “global call to action.”Without action, he said, environmental degradation will undermine progress in development and threaten the health and safety of future generations.In a new report, the U.N. Environment Program says the global population is using about 1.6 times what nature can sustainably provide, which means conservation is not adequate to prevent ecosystem degradation.The report says if action is taken now, humans will benefit from cleaner air and water, as well as better health, and contribute to the slowing of climate change.
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The U.S. space agency NASA said cargo on the latest supply ship headed for the International Space Station (ISS) includes newly hatched squid to be used in experiments examining the effects of space flight on microorganisms.NASA said the SpaceX Dragon resupply spacecraft that blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida Thursday – along with the squid, is carrying more than 3,300 kilograms of science experiments, new solar arrays, and other cargo.The hatchlings are bobtail squid and they are part of a project called Understanding of Microgravity on Animal-Microbe Interactions (UMAMI), which examines the effects of spaceflight on the molecular and chemical interactions between beneficial microbes and their animal hosts.  Gravity’s role in shaping those interactions is not well understood and microgravity provides the opportunity to improve that understanding.  At a NASA news briefing earlier this week, University of Florida microbiologist Jamie Foster told reporters all people and animals have beneficial microbes that help our bodies perform basic functions, like in the digestive or immune systems, and are essential to human health.  She said astronauts working in space frequently find their immune systems can become compromised or dysregulated – a potentially dangerous situation when you can’t go to a doctor immediately or you can’t get help.   Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline.Download File360p | 8 MB480p | 11 MB540p | 14 MB720p | 30 MB1080p | 55 MBOriginal | 415 MB Embed” />Copy Download AudioSpace NewsFoster says squid have similar immune systems to humans, but they are simpler organisms and therefore, are easier to study. She said the study could provide valuable insight into how extended spaceflight impacts astronauts’ bodies, and how to address it.The Dragon supply ship is expected to rendezvous with the ISS early Saturday, eastern U.S. time.
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U.S. intelligence officials found no evidence that unidentified aerial phenomena observed by Navy aviators in recent years were alien spacecraft, but the sightings remain unexplained in a highly anticipated government report, The New York Times said Thursday.
 
The report also found the vast majority of incidents documented over the past two decades did not originate from any American military or other advanced U.S. government technology, the Times said, citing senior administration officials briefed on the report headed to Congress this month.
 
Many of the 120-plus sightings reviewed in the classified intelligence study from a Pentagon task force were reported by U.S. Navy personnel, while some involved foreign militaries, according to the Times.
 
The newspaper said U.S. intelligence officials believe experimental technology of a rival power could account for at least some of the aerial phenomena in question.
 
One unnamed senior U.S. official briefed on the report told the Times there was concern among American intelligence and military officials that China or Russia could be experimenting with hypersonic technology.
 
An unclassified version of the report expected to be submitted to Congress by June 25 will present few other conclusions, the newspaper said.
 
Public fascination with unidentified flying objects has been stoked in recent weeks by the forthcoming report, with UFO enthusiasts anticipating revelations about unexplained sightings many believe the government has sought to discredit or cover up for decades.
 
But senior U.S. officials cited in the Times article said the report’s ambiguity meant the government was unable to definitively rule out theories that the unidentified phenomena might have been extraterrestrial in nature.
 
The government’s Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) Task Force was created following a spate of observations by military pilots of unknown aerial objects exhibiting exotic speeds and maneuverability that seemingly defied the limits of known technology and laws of physics.
 
Led by the Navy, the task force was established last year to “improve its understanding of, and gain insight into, the nature and origins of UAP incursions into our training ranges and designated airspace,” Pentagon spokeswoman Sue Gough told Reuters.
 
She said such incidents are of concern because of safety and national security implications.
 
Responding to Reuters’ questions about the task force report, Gough said in an email earlier Thursday: “We do not publicly discuss the details of the UAP observations, the task force or examinations.”
 
The term “unidentified flying objects,” or UFOs, long associated with the idea of alien spacecraft, has been largely supplanted in official government parlance by UAP, short for unidentified aerial phenomena, since December 2017.
 
It was then that the Pentagon first went on record, in a New York Times article, acknowledging documented UAP encounters by its warplanes and ships and efforts to catalog them, marking a turnaround from decades of publicly treating the subject as taboo.
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“The threat of a third wave” of COVID-19 in Africa is “real and rising,” Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization regional director for Africa, told a virtual news conference Thursday.  “While many countries outside Africa have now vaccinated their high-priority groups and are able to even consider vaccinating their children, African countries are unable to even follow up with second doses for high-risk groups,” Moeti said.   She urged “countries that have reached a significant vaccination coverage to release doses and keep the most vulnerable Africans out of critical care.”The New York Times reported that migrants in Italy are not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, even though the government has said that everyone has a right to the vaccine, regardless of their legal status. The Times account said a social security number is required to book an appointment for the shot, but only three of Italy’s 20 regions recognize the temporary numbers “given to hundreds of thousands of migrants.” Dr. Marco Mazzetti, the president of the Italian Society of Migration Medicine, told the newspaper that many of the migrants are domestic workers.“If we don’t control the virus circulation among these people who come inside our homes to help us, we don’t control the virus circulation in the country,” Mazzetti said. India’s health ministry says it has ordered 300 million doses of an unapproved vaccine at a cost of over $200 million to be produced by Hyderabad-based Biological-E.  The vaccine is currently in Phase 3 of the clinical trials.    India’s Supreme Court has criticized the country’s vaccine program, which has left much of the country’s massive population unvaccinated.  On Friday, India’s health ministry said that it had recorded 132,364 new coronavirus cases in the previous 24-hour period and 2,713 deaths.  India has reported 28.5 million COVID-19 cases, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.  Only the U.S. has more infections, at more than 33 million.Authorities in Britain have approved the Pfizer vaccine for 12-15-year-olds. Regulators said the trial involving 2,000 children produced a good response.COVAX financial boostIn other pandemic news, the WHO program to secure and distribute billions of COVID-19 vaccine doses to the world’s poorest countries has received a major financial boost. The COVAX initiative received nearly $2.4 billion in pledges Wednesday during a virtual summit hosted by Japan, which made the largest pledge, $800 million. The program also received significant financial pledges from Canada, France, Spain and Sweden.  COVAX has raised $9.6 billion since its creation.   Several nations also pledged to donate millions of doses from their domestic stockpiles to COVAX, with Japan again leading the way with a promise to donate 30 million doses.  COVAX is an alliance that includes the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, an organization founded by Bill and Melinda Gates to vaccinate children in the world’s poorest countries. The program has so far distributed 77 million vaccine doses to 127 countries, far below its initial pledge of up to 2 billion doses this year.  U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris reminded the summit that the Biden administration has pledged a total of $4 billion to COVAX for 2021-2022, but she made no new pledges of additional financial or vaccine donations. President Joe Biden has pledged to donate 80 million doses from the U.S. COVID-19 vaccine stockpile. 
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Japan delivered to Taiwan 1.24 million doses of AstraZeneca PLC’s coronavirus vaccine on Friday for free, in a gesture that will more than double the number of shots the island has received to date.Taiwan is battling a spike in domestic infections and has vaccinated only about 3% of its population. Japan has agreed to procure more than 300 million doses of coronavirus vaccines from Pfizer Inc, Moderna Inc and AstraZeneca, more than enough to cover its entire population.”At the time of the great east Japan earthquake 10 years ago, people in Taiwan sent us a lot of donations promptly. I believe that is etched vividly in the minds of Japanese people,” Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said, announcing the vaccine donation.”Such an important partnership and friendship with Taiwan is reflected in this offer.”The vaccines landed at Taipei’s main international airport early afternoon. Taiwan Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said he was “extremely thankful” the shots had arrived at a tense moment in the island’s fight against the pandemic, as he reported another 472 new infections.”I believe it will be very helpful in overall pandemic prevention,” he added.The donation is a triumph for Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who has faced public anger about the slow arrival of vaccines and small protests by the main opposition party, the Kuomintang, outside her offices.The donation “reflects the results of close exchanges between the Tsai Ing-wen government and the Japanese government over the past five years,” Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party said.Though Taiwan’s share has not been announced, the island will also get shots under a White House plan for the United States to share 25 million surplus COVID-19 vaccine doses with the world.Taiwan has received only about 860,000 doses so far, mainly AstraZeneca shots, but also a smaller number from Moderna. It has ordered more than 20 million doses from AstraZeneca and Moderna and is also developing its own vaccines.In an emailed statement to Reuters, Johnson & Johnson said that it had been in “confidential discussions” with Taiwan about providing its COVID-19 vaccine to the island since last year but gave no details.The J&J vaccine requires a single dose, rather than the two-shot regimen of most other COVID-19 vaccines.Like many governments, Taiwan’s vaccine plans have been stymied by global shortages.China, which claims the island as its own territory, has offered vaccines, but Taiwan has repeatedly expressed concern about their safety, and accused China of trying to block Taiwan’s vaccine purchases internationally. Beijing denies this.Japan approved AstraZeneca’s vaccine last month and has contracted to buy 120 million doses. But there are no immediate plans to use the shots, amid lingering concerns raised internationally over blood clots.
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The White House has announced it will deliver the bulk of its first 25 million donated doses of COVID-19 vaccine through COVAX, the United Nations-backed program delivering vaccines to low- and middle-income countries. That’s according to a White House announcement on Thursday. It’s part of a down payment on a pledge to donate 80 million doses by the end of June. The Biden administration has been under pressure to share its vaccine supply. VOA’s Steve Baragona has more.
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U.S. traffic deaths soared after coronavirus lockdowns ended in 2020, hitting the highest yearly total since 2007 as more Americans engaged in unsafe behavior on U.S. roads, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said Thursday.For all of 2020, 38,680 people died on U.S. roads, up 7.2%, or nearly 2,600 more than in 2019, even though Americans drove 13% fewer miles, preliminary data showed. The fatality rate hit 1.37 deaths per 100 million miles, the highest figure since 2006.In the second half of 2020, the number of traffic deaths was up more than 13%.NHTSA said the main behaviors that drove this increase included impaired driving, speeding and failure to wear seat belts.Deaths involving motorists not wearing seat belts were up 15%, speeding-related deaths jumped by 10% and fatal crashes involving alcohol rose 9%.Michigan said traffic deaths in the state rose 10% in 2020 to the highest number since 2007, even as crashes fell 22% and injuries fell 22%.”We intend to use all available tools to reverse these trends and reduce traffic fatalities and injuries,” said acting NHTSA Administrator Steven Cliff.In an open letter to drivers in January, NHTSA said “fewer Americans drove, but those who did took more risks and had more fatal crashes. … It’s irresponsible and illegal to drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol, which not only puts your life at risk but the lives of others.”Some experts said that as U.S. roads became less crowded, some motorists engaged in more unsafe behavior, including those who perceived police were less likely to issue tickets because of COVID-19. Data suggests a higher number of serious crashes last year involved drug or alcohol use than previously.NHTSA said in October a study of early crash data after the pandemic lockdowns found that “drivers who remained on the roads engaged in more risky behavior, including speeding, failing to wear seat belts, and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.”
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Space junk finally hits its mark.  Plus, NASA now eyes Venus after its first major flight issue on Mars. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us the Week in Space.Produced by: Arash Arabasadi
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The Biden administration on Thursday announced it will share 80 million excess doses of COVID-19 vaccines by the end of June, with FILE – A health worker talks to colleagues as they prepare to receive a coronavirus vaccine at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, March 5, 2021.Approximately 7 million doses will head to Asia, including to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Maldives, Nepal, the Pacific Islands, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Five million vaccine doses will be shared with Africa in coordination with the African Union.  In a briefing to reporters, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the administration will continue to donate excess supply as it becomes available.  “This is just the right thing to do,” Sullivan said. “And as the president has said, [the] United States will not use its vaccines to secure favors from other countries.” Of the 80 million doses — or 13 percent of the total U.S. vaccine production — that the Biden administration has committed so far to share worldwide — 75 percent will be donated through COVAX, prioritizing Latin America and the Caribbean, South and Southeast Asia, and Africa. The rest will be shared directly with places experiencing surges, immediate neighbors, and other countries that have requested immediate U.S. assistance.  Sullivan said that the U.S. will have the authority to determine where the doses distributed via COVAX will be allocated. “But that will be done in very close consultation in partnership with COVAX, and, crucially, according to COVAX’s formula, and then using the COVAX logistics capacity and delivery capacity to ensure that these doses actually translate into shots in arms that help save people’s lives.” The United Nations welcomed the move, with a spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, saying, “It is very important for wealthy countries, developed countries to share as much as possible with COVAX.” “And as the secretary-general has noted, [that] none of us will be safe until all of us are safe, which means that vaccines need to be within reach of everyone, everywhere,” Dujarric said, referring to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. AstraZeneca withheld  White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Jeffrey Zients said the initial 25 million doses comprised vaccines already approved by U.S. health authorities for emergency use, including Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizer.FILE – A health worker injects a doctor with a dose of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi, Vietnam, March 8, 2021.Meanwhile, 60 million excess AstraZeneca doses — the vaccine awaiting authorization for use in the U.S. but widely approved around the world — will remain held per further review by U.S. officials.  Humanitarian organizations welcome the announcement. Tom Hart, acting CEO of ONE Campaign, an organization working to end extreme poverty and preventable disease by 2030, called it a “welcome step that will save lives and help the world extinguish this global pandemic faster.” “However, it’s disappointing to see delays in donating the 60 million AstraZeneca doses — which have been approved for emergency use by the World Health Organization and will go unused otherwise,” said Hart in a statement. More neededOthers say the United States must commit to doing more, as it has secured enough doses to protect its entire population of 330 million and still have more than half a billion surplus vaccines left over.  “The 80 million doses it has promised to share barely scratches the surface of what’s needed,” said Carrie Teicher, director of programs at Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) USA. Margaret Besheer and Steve Herman contributed to this report.
 
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