, Columnist
Brazil and India Need Their Own Operation Warp Speed
Waiving patent rights won’t be enough to launch massive vaccine campaigns in developing countries.
Not a complete answer.
Photographer: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty ImagesCovid-19 is crushing developing countries such as India, Brazil and South Africa, and it won’t help to simply tinker with the patents on life-saving vaccines made by a handful of pharmaceutical companies.
It’s more crucial that the pharmaceutical industry’s manufacturing and distribution expertise be brought to bear on this epic challenge, as Bloomberg Opinion’s editorial board and my colleague Lionel Laurent have noted. Access to a recipe without access to an oven and serving trays won’t put food in anyone’s hands.