Key TakeawaysThe U.S. government has shown its support in waiving intellectual property rights for the COVID-19 vaccines.Waiving patents alone is unlikely to increase global vaccine production because low- and middle-income countries still lack manufacturing capacity, technology, skills, and raw materials.Experts say that the U.S. government should help facilitate technology transfer and expand access to raw materials and critical supplies for vaccine production.

Key Takeaways

The U.S. government has shown its support in waiving intellectual property rights for the COVID-19 vaccines.Waiving patents alone is unlikely to increase global vaccine production because low- and middle-income countries still lack manufacturing capacity, technology, skills, and raw materials.Experts say that the U.S. government should help facilitate technology transfer and expand access to raw materials and critical supplies for vaccine production.

For months, many people have been calling for the U.S. to support this waiver to provide more vaccines to low- and middle-income countries with inadequate vaccine supply, especially since more than 80% of the vaccine doses that have been administered globally were in high- and upper-middle-income countries.

Experts Say Developing Countries Need U.S. Vaccine Supply Now

Why Waiving Patents Isn’t Enough to Speed Up Production

Countries looking to produce COVID-19 vaccines face many logistical hurdles even if vaccine patents are waived.

“Waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines is likely to only have a modest impact on global vaccine supply,”William Moss, MD, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, tells Verywell. “A vaccine IP waiver is not in itself likely to lead to increased vaccine production in less developed countries because much more needs to be in place to increase the global vaccine supply.”

Lack of Manufacturing Capacity

For several countries outside of the U.S. that have the necessary equipment to produce mRNA vaccines effectively and safely, the IP waiver can be of great help. However, many more countries lack this capacity, and this move still leaves them behind.

“The majority of the world’s countries lack the capacity to produce and distribute COVID-19 vaccines, and especially at the scale required to get this pandemic under control,”Richard Marlink, MD, director of the Rutgers Global Health Institute, tells Verywell. “They need funding, manufacturing facilities, raw materials, and laboratory staff with the technological expertise required.”

We’ve already seen what can go wrong with substandard vaccine manufacturing. In April, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspected the Emergent BioSolutions factory in Baltimore and consequently shut down their production after concerning observations, which include:

They reportedly spoiled about 15 million doses of the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, and more than 100 million doses are on hold as regulators inspect them for possible contamination.

Lack of Technology, Skills, and Raw Materials

In a statement last October, Moderna announced that they will not enforce their COVID-19-related patents against those who will make vaccines during this pandemic.While waiving some vaccine patents may allow third-party manufacturers to make and sell COVID-19 vaccines, the transfer of skills and technology that will allow them to manage production isn’t very simple.

For instance, a spokesperson for Pfizer said that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine required 280 different components sourced from 86 suppliers across various countries. Manufacturing the vaccine would require highly specialized equipment and complex technology transfers.

Interested manufacturers would need to have the proper equipment to test the quality and consistency of their manufacturing. At present, the World Health Organization (WHO) has plans to facilitate the establishment of technology hubs to transfer “a comprehensive technology package and provide appropriate training” to manufacturers from lower- and middle-income countries.

While waiving vaccine patents is necessary, it’s likely not enough. Additionally, negotiations about it are still ongoing. Even though the U.S. supports the waiver of COVID-19 vaccine patents, other countries like the United Kingdom, Japan, and Germany oppose it.

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It’s also important to remember that manufacturing vaccines is only one step of the process of vaccinating the global population—distributing it is yet another hurdle.

“Many countries are counting on COVAX, a global collaboration to distribute COVID-19 vaccines more equitably around the world,” Marlink says. “The single largest supplier to COVAX is in India, where exports have been suspended since March due to the country’s COVID-19 crisis.”

What This Means For YouMore than 60% of adults in the United States have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, but in many parts of the world, vaccines remain inaccessible and largely unavailable.To protect yourself and others as well, it is crucial that you book your appointment to get vaccinated if you have the opportunity. You can find an appointment near you atVaccineFinder.org.

What This Means For You

More than 60% of adults in the United States have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, but in many parts of the world, vaccines remain inaccessible and largely unavailable.To protect yourself and others as well, it is crucial that you book your appointment to get vaccinated if you have the opportunity. You can find an appointment near you atVaccineFinder.org.

What the U.S. Government Can Do

Experts say that the U.S. government should incentivize and fund the transfer of technology and know-how to low- and middle-income countries, as well as facilitate the supply of equipment and raw materials.

“In addition to increasing the global vaccine supply, investments need to be made to support low- and middle-income countries in building the capacity to get vaccines into the arms of those who need them,” Moss says.

U.S. Will Donate 60 Million AstraZeneca COVID Vaccine Doses

“Donating vaccines is not enough for poor countries with insufficient healthcare systems and infrastructure,” Marlink says. “The U.S. government can and should engage with the governments of poorer countries to create bilateral public health efforts, just like it does in its efforts to fight HIV/AIDS around the world. We need to help not only with supply but also with implementation. It is a waste to donate vaccines without working together to ensure the vaccines are safely injected into people’s arms.”

“The patent waiver is only one piece of what is needed,” Marlink says. “Developing countries are going to need technical know-how, the right skills and materials, and regulatory safeguards in order to produce safe and reliable vaccines, and to scale up that production effectively.”

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.

10 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Office of the United States Trade Representative.Statement from Ambassador Katherine Tai on the Covid-19 Trips Waiver.

World Health Organization.Director-General’s opening remarks at One Shared World event.

Department of Health and Human Services.FORM FDA 483.

Stolberg SG, LaFraniere S.100 Million Vaccine Doses Held Up Over Contamination Concerns, Firm Reveals.The New York Times.

Stolberg SG, Kaplan T, Robbins R.Pressure Mounts to Lift Patent Protections on Coronavirus Vaccines.The New York Times.

World Health Organization.Establishment of a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine technology transfer hub to scale up global manufacturing.

British Medical Journal.Covid-19: How will a waiver on vaccine patents affect global supply?.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.COVID data tracker.

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