Reuters: EXCLUSIVE — WHO vaccine scheme risks failure, leaving poor countries no COVID shots until 2024 “The global scheme to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to poorer countries faces a ‘very high’ risk of failure, potentially leaving nations home to billions of people with no access to vaccines until as late as…

STAT: One-quarter of the world may not get a Covid-19 vaccine until 2022, experts warn “As wealthy governments race to lock in supplies of Covid-19 vaccines, nearly a quarter of the world’s population — mostly in low- and middle-income countries — will not have access to a shot until 2022,…

The Hill: FDA says Pfizer vaccine supply is up to 40 percent higher than previously thought as vials hold multiple doses “The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday said that health officials may be able to obtain as many as seven doses of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine from vials initially…

NPR: China Has A Theory About Its New COVID-19 Cases. Many Scientists Are Skeptical “China now reports few to none domestically transmitted COVID-19 cases — only 12 cases were reported on Dec. 15. But a flurry of recent cases has Chinese public health officials worried. They claim that the cases…

CIDRAP News: COVID-19 surges stretch health systems in U.S., elsewhere “COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in the United States continue to climb, with some declines seen in some Upper Midwest states, but surging activity in states such as California. In Europe, some countries are struggling with slowing their activity in…

Foreign Policy: WTO Meeting Pits Rich Against Poor In Fight For Vaccines “…South Africa and India are leading a group of low- and middle-income countries calling for a waiver on intellectual property rights on products related to the pandemic — including personal protective equipment, therapeutics, and vaccines. China has also…

Washington Post: Biden will arrive in office amid a pandemic. It will be his biggest challenge — but also an opportunity. “As President-elect Joe Biden and his team devise a governing strategy to defeat the coronavirus pandemic — the incoming administration’s most urgent priority — they have become centrally focused…

Cato Institute: An Unnecessary Proposal: A WTO Waiver of Intellectual Property Rights for COVID-19 Vaccines James Bacchus, distinguished university professor of global affairs and director of the Center for Global Economic and Environmental Opportunity at the University of Central Florida and adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute, discusses a proposal…

AP: French President Macron tests positive for COVID-19 “French President Emmanuel Macron tested positive for COVID-19 Thursday, following a week when he has met with numerous European leaders. The French and Spanish prime ministers are among those self-isolating because they had recent contact with him. Macron took a test ‘as…

AFP/YouTube: Virus hunters delve into Gabon forest in search for next threat | AFP (12/16). Devex: Q&A: The woman tasked with bringing gender to the center of the Gates Foundation (Cheney, 12/17). Devex: Q&A: Addressing polio through a gender lens (12/17). Devex: How a new data portal aims to accelerate…