Covax, the WHO-backed global vaccine access initiative, said Sept. 8 that it will deliver about 30 percent fewer COVID-19 shots this year than its original goal, The Hill reported.
The program set a goal of delivering 2 billion vaccines by the end of 2021, but is on track to deliver about 1.4 billion. Covax expects to see an increase in vaccine deliveries in the fourth quarter of the year, but will still fall short of the goal, according to The Hill.
The initiative said the shortfall is caused partly by restrictions on exports from the Serum Institute of India, a key supplier of vaccines, and problems with manufacturing at vaccine-making plants, such as the problems encountered by Emergent BioSolutions in manufacturing Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine. Delays in regulatory approval for other vaccines have also played a role, The Hill reported.
Covax will likely reach its goal to deliver 2 billion doses between January and February, The Hill reported.
The shortfall in vaccine deliveries comes as the WHO has called on wealthy nations to halt giving their citizens booster shots while lower-income countries don't have enough shots for initial vaccinations. Globally, 81 percent of COVID-19 vaccines administered have been in high- and upper-middle-income countries, according to data cited by The New York Times. Only 0.4 percent of vaccines have been administered in low-income countries.
In the U.S., the federal government has said it will begin administering booster shots in the general population Sept. 20. The country is already giving boosters to immunocompromised people.