Want to stop the pandemic? Vaccinate the world.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is chairing the meeting, will call on world leaders to cut the time it takes to develop new vaccines down to 100 days. The UK, which has secured enough doses to cover its population four times over, has pledged to send the bulk of future surplus vaccines to COVAX. In contrast, US administration officials said no decision had been made on directly donating its surplus doses to other countries — a key part in speeding up efforts to get the world’s population vaccinated.

COVAX hopes to provide vaccinations to at least 20% of the population of the world’s poorest countries by the end of this year. There have been questions as to whether it could achieve that goal, due to challenges in acquiring sufficient funding and supplies. The US contribution will make up significant ground, but many say it is not enough.

The unfair reality is just 10 countries have administered 75% of the world’s available Covid-19 vaccine supply, while more than 130 nations haven’t even received their first doses, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said this week. Rich countries are on track to stockpile over 1 billion “more doses of Covid-19 vaccines than they need to fully vaccinate all their citizens … leaving billions of people with little hope of receiving a vaccine this year,” analysis by the One Campaign found.

YOU ASKED. WE ANSWERED

Q: How long is it safe to wait for the second dose of the vaccine?

A: Some vaccine providers have been forced to cancel appointments due to the winter weather that has ravaged much of the US, and more than more than 2,000 vaccination sites are in areas suffering from power outages.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the second dose of the vaccines approved so far in the US can be administered up to 42 days, or six weeks, after the initial inoculation. So if your appointment for a second dose was delayed or canceled due to winter weather, there should still be time to get fully vaccinated.

WHAT’S IMPORTANT TODAY

More evidence that one dose of Pfizer’s vaccine gives strong protection

There’s more evidence that a single dose of coronavirus vaccine might be enough to significantly reduce disease. An Israeli study found that people who got a single dose of Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine were increasingly less likely to develop Covid-19 symptoms as time passed, and they were 85% less likely to get sick two to four weeks after getting their first shot. Canadian researchers also found that one dose of the vaccine provided more than 90% protection.

It comes after Pfizer/BioNTech announced Thursday that the first participants of its global Covid-19 vaccine trial for pregnant women have received their first doses.

European countries caught in a vaccine no man’s land

Kosovo, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina are still waiting to receive their first vaccine shipments, while rollouts in Albania and Northern Macedonia have so far been limited to a few hundred people.

The Western Balkan countries are key allies and possible future members of the European Union, but they have been left out of the bloc’s immediate vaccine supply plans. And they are also not a top priority for programs like COVAX, which are designed to help the world’s poorest countries access vaccines.

Taiwan blames ‘external forces’ for blocking BioNTech vaccine deal. China says it had nothing to do with it

A day earlier, Taiwanese health minister Chen Shih-chung said in a radio interview that Taiwan and BioNTech were about to sign a deal for 5 million vaccine doses in December, when the company suddenly backed out. “In the process of (discussing the deal) I had always worried that there would be external forces intervening,” Chen said, without naming any country. “We believe there was political pressure,” he said. “Back then we had already prepared our press release. But certain people don’t want Taiwan to be too happy.”

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TOP TIP

Explore the ocean while you shelter at home

Diving in the oceans, marine biologist Erika Woolsey has seen first-hand how coral reefs and sea life are being damaged by climate change. It has made her determined to find a way for others to share her experience — including those who can’t easily explore the ocean. Through her non-profit, The Hydrous, Woolsey is using virtual reality to “bring the ocean to everyone.”

TODAY’S PODCAST

“The yellow peril fear gets resurrected whenever a epidemic arises from China or Asia and we’re met with interpersonal violence and racist policies. And that’s exactly what happened during Covid-19.” — Russell Jeung, professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University