In October 2020, we delivered a petition with more than 91,000 signatures to Canada’s Minister of Health, calling on the Canadian government to take immediate steps to ensure fair, affordable and equitable access to any medicines, vaccines or other health technologies developed with Canadian public funds, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. WATCH THE RECAP The […]
Category: COVID 19
Providing COVID-19 vaccination in northwest Syria amongst war, displacement and hesitancy
“For people like us who have survived war, shelling and daily violence, the coronavirus has been the last of our concerns,” says Em Mahmoud, a Syrian woman from Idlib. “When the number of cases started rising in northern Syria, I tried to persuade my husband to take the vaccine, but he was afraid,” she says. […]
Lack of a real IP waiver on COVID-19 tools is a disappointing failure for people
More than 20 months since India and South Africa first proposed a landmark intellectual property (IP) Waiver for COVID-19 medical tools at the World Trade Organization (WTO), governments have reached a decision at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference in Geneva from June 12-15. The decision text contains a set of clarifications of the existing […]
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Northern Syria: An ineffective humanitarian buffer has hampered COVID-19 vaccination
The COVID-19 vaccine Humanitarian Buffer (HB) is failing its mission to support populations hit by the pandemic and struggling to have access to immunization, says Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The HB is part of the COVAX mechanism, co-led by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), Gavi, the World Health Organization (WHO) […]
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4 reasons why we’re asking governments to reject the leaked text on COVID-19 at the WTO
The story so far What is being negotiated? In October 2020, half a year into the COVID-19 pandemic that has now claimed over six million lives, India and South Africa proposed a waiver to temporarily remove intellectual property (IP) challenges related to COVID-19 medical tools, to facilitate more independent production and supply to address rapidly […]
South Africa: Supporting COVID-19 vaccination for the hard to reach in Khayelitsha
A vaccination support program developed by Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in Khayelitsha in partnership with the Western Cape Department of Health (WCDoH), South Africa has shown that it is possible to target individuals with comorbidities that increase the risk of severe disease and death from COVID-19. Most facilities in South Africa do not offer targeted vaccination support […]
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Responding to COVID-19 in Myanmar: A letter from the team on the ground
Myanmar’s public healthcare system is in disarray. Days after the military seized power on February 1, 2021, medical staff walked out of their jobs, spearheading the civil disobedience movement that saw government employees of all stripes go on strike. Most have not returned. Those on strike who continue to practice in underground clinics risk being […]
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One year after the first shot, pharma must urgently “share the tech” of COVID-19 vaccines
As the omicron variant spreads, MSF calls on Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech to immediately share their lifesaving mRNA vaccine technology with manufacturers that stand ready to boost the global supply.
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MSF to President Biden: Help free the COVID-19 vaccine
MSF, supporters deliver petition to White House to demand President Biden do more to increase global access to COVID-19 vaccines.
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Northern Syria: Health system overwhelmed in most severe COVID-19 outbreak yet
Northern Syria is experiencing its most severe recorded wave of COVID-19 yet, with needs fast outpacing limited oxygen supplies and health facilities running out of testing kits. In the northwest the health system is already unable to cope, while in the northeast the virus is spreading at a worrying pace, the international medical humanitarian organization […]
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