2 billion Covid-19 doses a long haul, but most will be covered by December

Khyati Shah07 Jun, 2021Business

While two billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines by the end of this year may be difficult, industry and analysts say a significant portion of the adult population can be covered with at least one dose by December. The ambitious ramp-up plans, however, depend on the availability of raw material, the ability to scale up manufacturing drug substances, and forging partnerships to use the ?fill-and-finish? capacities to their fullest. The world?s largest vaccine maker by volumes ? Serum Institute of India (SII) ? is making 70 million doses a month of Covishield and has started stockpiling Novavax vaccines too.