More than 10 billion Covid vaccine doses administered across globe

More than 10 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered across the globe, according to the latest tally from the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker.

The total is more than enough to give a dose to every person on Earth. But the milestone hides substantial inequality: Just over 13 months since the first vaccines went into arms, many wealthy, developed nations have achieved deep levels of vaccination across their populations. Many less-wealthy places, particularly in Africa, have not.  

The wealthiest 107 countries in the world—including China, the U.S. and Europe—comprise 54% of the global population, but have used 71% of vaccines. Less wealthy places such as India, much of Africa and parts of Asia make up almost half of people on Earth and yet account for less than 30% of shots given. 

Next Covid variant may be more contagious: WHO

The next Covid-19 variant that will rise to world attention will be more contagious than omicron, but the real question scientists need to answer is whether or not it will be more deadly, World Health Organization officials said. 

Roughly 21 million Covid cases were reported to the WHO over the last week, setting a new global record for weekly cases from the rapidly spreading omicron variant, Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid-19 technical lead, said during a livestreamed Q&A across the group’s social media channels.