White House diverts funds from tests to jabs

The administration of US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that a lack of funds is forcing it to divert more than $10 billion in coronavirus relief from test procurement and other efforts in order to secure the next generation of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments for some high-risk people.

The disclosure came as data shows that more than 82 million doses of vaccines have been wasted in the United States.

The White House said it has been left with "no choice" but to cut back on orders of at-home rapid tests and personal protective equipment.

This means that the rapid-test companies will go through another round of layoffs. The small domestic industry first had to lay off employees last summer because the availability of vaccines reduced the demand.

The White House said such measures are meant to maintain some stockpiles of vaccines and treatments for the coming winter. It urged Congress to act to provide enough money to secure doses for all who might want or need them.

The administration said the moves on Wednesday would shift $5 billion to buy COVID-19 vaccine doses for the fall, $4.9 billion for 10 million Paxlovid oral antiviral treatment courses and $300 million for the purchase of additional monoclonal antibody treatments.

The White House's decision to divert funds to stockpile vaccines follows an announcement by drugmaker Moderna on Wednesday that the modified mRNA vaccine－mRNA-1273.214－has proved effective against the Omicron variant of the virus in its clinical study.

But some experts worry the virus is evolving so fast that it is outpacing attempts to modify vaccines, much like the flu vaccines that have been modestly successful over the years in dealing with the fast-mutating virus.

On Tuesday, advisers to the US Food and Drug Administration voted to authorize Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in adults, saying it would be beneficial for people aged 18 and older. If the FDA approves the Novavax vaccine for emergency use, it will become the fourth COVID-19 vaccine to be used in the US.

However, in the face of concerns over future vaccine supplies, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that between December 2020 and May 2022, 82.1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines were discarded; they accounted for 11 percent of the doses the federal government distributed.

CDC data shows that retailers CVS and Walmart were responsible for over a quarter of the discarded doses. Two states also threw away more than a quarter of their doses. Oklahoma tossed out 28 percent of about 4 million doses it received, and Alaska threw away 27 percent of the 1 million doses it received.

Jab readiness might be necessary as the number of people in the US infected by two newer Omicron subvariants has nearly doubled in a week, according to CDC data. Data showed that the subvariants, known as BA.4 and BA.5, had grown to represent 13 percent of new coronavirus cases by June 4.

Agencies and Xinhua contributed to this story.