Inside the race to find a coronavirus vaccine
Writing for Devex, Jenny Lei Ravelo looks at how the global health community is trying to fast-track the development of a vaccine against the novel coronavirus. Alex Kong, researcher for the Access to Medicine Index, is quoted in the article on the potential access barriers in the face of a global outbreak.
The article dives into some of the factors that may affect global access to the vaccine, once a viable candidate has been developed. Alex Kong explains that companies who are exploring medicines that can be repurposed for COVID-19 can be a positive thing "as governments are also more likely to allow trials for medicines already in use or under investigation." Alex also talks about some of the potential hurdles to consider early on such as supply shortages and stockouts - especially for low- and middle-income countries.