This archive report was first published on 17 November 2021.
Published on November 17, 2021, the White House has announced plans to invest billions of dollars to expand U.S. vaccine manufacturing capacity.
According to two top advisers to President Biden, the investment is the first step in a new plan to partner with industry to address immediate vaccine needs overseas and domestically, as well as prepare for future pandemics.
Dr. David Kessler, who oversees vaccine distribution for the administration, and Jeff Zients, Mr. Biden's coronavirus response coordinator, stated that the goal is to have vaccine capability within six to nine months of identifying a future pandemic pathogen and to have enough vaccines for all Americans.
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Agency intends to issue a 'request for information' to solicit ideas from companies with experience manufacturing vaccines using mRNA technology.
Activists have been demanding that the administration scale up global vaccine manufacturing capacity, with some turning up at the home of Ron Klain, Mr. Biden's chief of staff, in September and depositing a fake mountain of bones on the sidewalk in protest.
However, the administration's plan to offer booster shots to millions of vaccinated Americans has been met with criticism from World Health Organization officials and other experts who say the doses should go to low- and lower-middle-income countries first.
