WHO expected to grant emergency approval to one or two more COVID-19 vaccines

The World Health Organization expects to grant emergency approval for at least one or two more COVID-19 vaccines in the coming weeks, according to a media report. 

The agency has received requests for approval from at least three vaccine makers, Reuters reported Friday, citing Mariangela Simao, WHO assistant director-general for access to medicines and health products. She did not say which vaccines were being considered for authorization. 

Last month, WHO approved China’s Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use. The agency also has given emergency approval for COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Sinovac. 

More than 2.8 billion vaccine doses have been administered worldwide as of Friday afternoon, a Johns Hopkins University tally shows. The coronavirus has infected more than 180 million people and killed more than 3.9 million globally. 

The U.S. has recorded more than 33.5 million cases of COVID-19 and more than 603,000 deaths.  

More than 320 million vaccine doses have been administered in the U.S. as of Friday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly 170,000 U.S. adults, about 66%, are partially vaccinated, while about 145,000, or 56%, are fully vaccinated. 

The Biden administration this week acknowledged that it likely will miss its goal of having 70% of adults nationwide partially vaccinated and 160 million Americans fully vaccinated by July 4.