Vaccine makers were just beginning to catch up to demand. Then omicron hit.
The omicron variant has thrown the outlook for global coronavirus vaccine supply in 2022 into disarray, putting pressure on vaccine manufacturers to ramp up production to meet surging demand for booster shots and close the gap between rich and poor countries. Increasing demand for boosters in wealthy countries, particularly for Pfizer-Biotech and Moderna vaccines, which are considered the most effective, will make it even more difficult for the global south to catch up to wealthier nations any time soon, advocates and experts said. Despite this, the vast number of unvaccinated persons in underdeveloped countries makes it more likely for the coronavirus to mutate and produce new varieties, according to the researchers. "We're already seeing countries alter their booster rollout strategies. “This has a negative impact on current supply," said Louise Blair, a principal analyst at Infinity, a British consulting business that regularly monitors production statistics. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has cited total worldwide vaccination supply as an indication of international success. As of January 3, a total of 9.2 billion injections have been administered worldwide. However, global health experts believe that considerably more vaccinations are required. It will take 11 billion shots to give 70 percent of the world's 8 billion inhabitant’s two shots. Adding a third injection or booster brings the total number of shots to at least 16 billion. Furthermore, not all injections, notably against omicron, have a robust response. Chinese manufacturers have produced nearly half of all global immunizations so far. Those shots, Sinovac and Sinopharm, are proving to be far less effective against the new version than Pfizer-Biotech and Moderna's mRNA vaccines. Because other vaccinations offer less protection, a group of advocates and academics stated on Wednesday that the globe will need 22 billion mRNA vaccine doses by 2022 to stop the pandemic, a figure that won't be met under current forecasts.