COVID-19: US Congressman Krishnamoorthi launches legislation to provide funding for vaccinating middle-income countries

By Reena Bhardwaj
Washington [US], May 20 : US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi on Wednesday (local time) announced that he is launching legislation to provide funding for vaccinating 60 per cent of the population from middle-income countries against COVID-19.
The legislation will expand American aid to India, Argentina, and other nations to end COVID surges through vaccination, reducing the risk of dangerous new variants.
In an exclusive interview to ANI, Krishnamoorthi said, "Today I am launching legislation to provide funding so that we can vaccinate 60 per cent of the population in middle-income countries around the world. We need to vaccinate the rest of the world if we can do that. And we can finally get rid of COVID. That's the way that we have to go. And that's what I'm going to be pursuing in Congress."
Following new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance that fully vaccinated Americans can remove masks and resume normal activities, Congressman Krishnamoorthi announced the Nullifying Opportunities for Variants to Infect and Decimate (NOVID) Act, an expansive coronavirus prevention program that will ensure Americans are not subject to another deadly surge of COVID-19 domestically.
Asserting to help middle-income countries with NOVID Act, Krishnamoorthi said, "When we have vaccinated, most of our population in the United States that's very good, but countries like India and other countries are hard hit by COVID. It's only a matter of time before they may come in the United States again, so it is not only the right thing to help these other countries but also one of the smart things to do."
In a message to the people of India, he remarked, "Help is on the way. And we are going to do everything we can. I'm a member of the special Select Committee on COVID in Congress. And so, this is an area that I deeply care about. And so, I'm going to be pushing very hard, those who are ill I'm thinking about you. We are all praying for you. My own family was touched. Now we are going to try and we're going to try to help you in a fundamental way."
Regarding the roll-out of US vaccines to India, Krishnamoorthi expressed gratitude to President Joe Biden and said he is glad that the President answered his call to try to release doses from our stockpile to India.
"I'm really glad that President answered my call to try to release doses from our stockpile to India. They're being renewed for safety and efficacy and then they will be set. But we have to do more than that. Production just restarted," he said.
"Human beings are human beings regardless of where they are and so we need to help them in their dire time of need, especially with regard to illness. I don't think anybody wants anyone to be sick and is a fundamental belief of mine and so that's why we're going to be trying to help other people and I'm going to be pushing very hard, not only for our brothers and sisters but worldwide brothers and sisters, wherever they live, we're going to try to help them and I'm going to push off my support."
Under the NOVID Act, the United States would establish the USD 19 billion Pandemic Preparedness and Response Program (PanPReP) through the State Department, modelled on President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), to oversee and coordinate the US global strategy for the COVID-19 pandemic.
The PanPReP would work with international partners and host countries to procure enough vaccines to inoculate 60 per cent of the populations of the 92 low and middle-income countries eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines through the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) program in order to drastically reduce the emergence of dangerous new virus variants.
To ensure effective administration of the vaccines, the program would include ensuring their end-to-end delivery. PanPReP would also work with manufacturers to rapidly scale up the production capacity of vaccines and their components in order to secure sufficient supply to achieve herd immunity in COVAX nations and to prepare for any subsequent production of second-generation vaccines necessary to counter new virus strains in the United States and abroad.