America needs to learn table manners for the Covid vaccine dinner

[70sEraVet]

As excited as I am that the US may soon start distributing a vaccine, I had to wonder how long poorer nations would have to wait. The image of irresponsible Americans running around maskless, then being the first at the vaccine dinner table, leaving the scraps for the poorer dinner guests, is not an image that we should be proud of, but one which fits us far more often than we would like.
I did come across an NPR article that described how several EU nations and others are working on the problem of getting vaccines to our poorer nations. Of course, America is habitually absent.
"...several of these countries, including Canada and the U.K., recently joined an international initiative to help distribute the vaccine more equally around the world and to help bring vaccine to countries who can't produce or purchase it themselves. (The U.S. hasn't yet joined the agreement.)"
https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/11/05/931397094/poor-countries-fall-behind-in-race-to-reserve-covid-19-vaccine

[underpants]

1. Internally it looks like we are going by population.

By state. At least that what I read earlier.

[captain queeg]

2. Hadn't thought about it but this is surely something to consider

As Americans will probably be the first citizens to receive the vaccine I have no doubt they’ll quickly want to start traveling recreationally. Often to poorer less advanced places. And it’s very likely. They will bring their selfish attitudes with them. They’ll flaunt the rules of the country they are traveling to. Other places will need to take measures to protect their own people from American tourists.

[mwooldri]

3. What vaccine gets distributed depends on its "distributability"

The Pfizer vaccine needs a super cold chain. The Moderna vaccine needs a cold chain. The Oxford vaccine needs refrigeration. I don't know enough about the Sputnik vaccine or any other vaccine coming up. I somehow think the Pfizer vaccine will be distributed mainly in "first world" countries, whereas I believe the Oxford vaccine will receive wide distribution since it doesn't need to be kept super frozen or even plain frozen. Plus the Oxford vaccine has been decided from the get-go to be priced at-cost, so it will be cheaper up front and easier for donors to buy lots of doses.

[BumRushDaShow]

4. Supposedly the Moderna vaccine can remain viable at refrigerator temps for a month

with longer-term storage at -20C (-4F), which is an easy target for regular consumer-grade deep freezers (my little deep freezer can get down to at least -14F and its cycle hasn't had it go above -4F when kept closed).

Moderna to ask the FDA to greenlight its coronavirus vaccine

By Carolyn Y. Johnson
November 30, 2020 at 7:00 a.m. EST


(snip)

The vaccine can be stored frozen at minus-20 degrees Celsius and lasts at refrigerator temperatures for up to a month, which would likely make it easier to deploy than the candidate from Pfizer and BioNTech, which requires ultracold storage conditions not typically found at pharmacies and doctors’ offices.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/11/30/moderna-covid-vaccine-fda-approval/

[lostnfound]

5. Oxford vaccine is getting downplayed in media and government

Wish we could trust that our government would pursue best option without regard for stock market impact.

Moderna market cap has doubled. Maybe it’s so much better, or maybe it’s just much more profitable. But the spin in some articles about Oxford’s protocol mishaps has been over-the-top.