White House and federal health officials are debating sending millions of doses of AstraZeneca abroad while the U.S. government awaits safety clearance for the vaccine.
Senior administration officials told The New York Times there has been intense debate among U.S. officials over the fate of tens of millions of British-Swedish vaccine doses sitting in manufacturing facilities in Ohio and Maryland amid pleas for supply from other countries that have already approved it for use.
Some officials argue that the offer should go abroad, while others are not ready to give it up, sources told Times.
AstraZeneca was also involved in the talks, and the company has repeatedly stated that it has encouraged the US to heed the requests of other countries.
“We understand that other governments may have reached out to the U.S. government about donating doses of AstraZeneca, and we have asked the U.S. government to carefully consider these requests,” Gonzalo Viña, a spokeswoman for AstraZeneca, told Times .
The company asked the Biden government to send the doses to the European Union (EU), but an official told the Times that the government had not wanted to do so since.
The Times reported that some federal officials had pressured the administration in the next few weeks to make the decision. Some have suggested that the doses be sent to Brazil, where the coronavirus is still devastating the population.
AstraZeneca vaccines have not been approved in the US, and the company has not yet applied for authorization for emergency use with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The Times’ report comes after Italy, with the support of the European Commission, allegedly blocked AstraZeneca vaccines to Australia after the company allegedly did not deliver the required amount of doses to the EU.
Results of the Phase Three trial of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the US should be within the next few weeks, but it is not clear how quickly the vaccine will be approved for use.
The Hill reached out to AstraZeneca and the White House for comment.