U.S. to share vaccines

The U.S. government has stockpiled millions of doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine even though it isn’t approved for use in the country yet. The White House on Monday announced plans to donate the shots to other nations as long as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gives the go-ahead. Between the three vaccines with U.S. emergency use authorization—made by Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson—more than half of American adults have already had at least one shot, and there should be enough for everyone who wants a vaccine to get one by early summer.

Where will the vaccines go? The U.S. government hasn’t finalized where it will ship the shots. The Biden administration sent about 4 million doses to Mexico and Canada last month, and the two countries have asked for more. But dozens of other nations are also seeking access. About 10 million doses are ready to go, and some 50 million more are somewhere in the production process and could be ready for export by May or June. The United States is also planning to send medical supplies to India to battle a recent surge in infections.

Dig deeper: Listen to Jill Nelson’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about how Israel vaccinated its adult population so quickly.