mazzucato14_XinhuaZhang Yuwei via Getty Images_coronavirusvaccinelab Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei via Getty Images

How to Develop a COVID-19 Vaccine for All

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Strong health systems, adequate testing capacity, and an effective, universally available vaccine will be key to protecting societies from COVID-19. But ensuring that no one is left behind requires not just unprecedented collective investment, but also a very different approach to innovation.

LONDON – In the early weeks of 2020, it started to dawn on people that COVID-19 could be the long-dreaded but expected “Disease X” – a global pandemic caused by an unknown virus. Three months later, the majority of the world’s population is in lockdown, and it is clear that we are only as healthy as our neighbors – locally, nationally, and internationally.

Strong health systems, adequate testing capacity, and an effective, universally available vaccine will be key to protecting societies from COVID-19. But ensuring that no one is left behind requires not just unprecedented collective investment, but also a very different approach.

Researchers at universities and companies around the world are racing to develop a vaccine. And current progress is encouraging: 73 vaccine candidates are actively being explored or are in preclinical development, while five already have entered clinical trials.

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