COVID Vaccines and Global Cooperation

 

COVID-19 Vaccines and Global Cooperation

Globalization is so apparent in modern day society that issues that occur in one society end up effecting everyone else around the world. COVID-19 is facilitated through the means of globalization, as most other viruses and illnesses are. Through international travel by air and water, COVID-19 has effected nearly every country on the planet. As the virus itself is a global issue, the distribution and facilitation of the vaccine is an global issue as well. 

Vaccines require a lot of global integration and communication. When a virus or flu is discovered, almost every country searches for a vaccine to better the overall health of the country and limit deaths. Countries work together to send resources and financial aid to enhance the speed of finding a vaccine suitable for the virus. In the United States, we currented are undergoing Operation Warp Speed under the Trump administration which seeks the fastest possible vaccine. This is often worrying because we now worry about the possibility of wasting materials on a vaccine that may be ineffective since we are rushing. 

Along with the materials required, we also face the problem of cooperation from countries. According to a New York Times article written by Knvul Sheikh, "At least 69 countries have also banned or restricted the export of medical devices, medicines and protective equipment, according to the Global Trade Alert project at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, because of their own needs during the pandemic". This is quite worrying due to the sheer amount of cooperation needed to find a vaccine and transport it. Yet, countries find themselves in their own struggles and are not ready to extend help to others. 

A final issue that is quite interesting is the cooperation needed to store these vaccines. Most vaccines require a certain temperature maintain effectiveness. In some cases, this is as low as minus 80 Celsius. A lot of room is needed to store thousands of vials as well as proper glass that can withstand such low temperatures. This glass can become quite costly, as David Gelles noted in his New York Times article. He wrote that, "In June, the government awarded the company a $204 million contract to increase its production of the special vials". This is an incredible amount of money to spend on the specific glass required to avoid cracking and ultimately losing vaccines. When transporting these vaccines, there must also be temperature cooling in the planes, which is where the usage of dry ice comes in. Yet, dry ice is made of carbon dioxide and releases the gas which can be very dangerous to the pilots. Dry ice itself also requires ethanol which is a resource that can become easily depleted if used in overabundance. Overall, the issue of creating and transporting vaccines is one that requires a lot of global help and communication.