ECRI issues statement on COVID-19 vaccine boosters, global vaccine equity

Editor's Note

In an October 26 news release, ECRI announced the publication of a Position Statement on “COVID-19 Vaccines: Mitigating Disease and Promoting Global Health Equity.”

Speaking in support of the Statement, Marcus Schabacker, MD, PhD, president and chief executive officer, ECRI, says: “Despite the FDA and CDC’s advancement of COVID-19 boosters, more lives could be saved globally by vaccinating the millions of unvaccinated and highly vulnerable healthcare workers and high-risk people in low- and middle-income countries than by administering booster shots to healthy populations.”

He adds that: “The United states and other high-income nations must do more to equitably distribute vaccines across the world. It is in America’s best interest to protect vulnerable populations abroad before offering boosters that provide a potential increase in immunity to healthy people.”