The Risks and Challenges of the Global COVID-19-vaccine Rollout

Good piece by McKinsey.    Note the interactive piece to explore the related complexities. 

The risks and challenges of the global COVID-19-vaccine rollout

McKinsey:  January 26, 2021 | Article

The COVID-19 vaccines of the BioNTech and Pfizer partnership (Pfizer–BioNTech) and Moderna have received Emergency Use Authorization in Canada, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, and other countries. Many frontline workers and priority population segments have received their first doses. Vaccines from AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, and several other global manufacturers are also arriving (or are expected to arrive soon) and are being distributed for administration around the world. This monumental global effort has shattered the record for vaccine development: the fastest previous vaccine project, Merck’s mumps vaccine, was four and a half years in development (1963–67).

In certain places, the COVID-19-vaccine effort has hit a few speed bumps; stockpiles have accumulated, and deployment to vulnerable countries and at-risk groups has been slower than expected. Nonetheless, experts have expressed confidence that safe and highly efficacious vaccines are reaching the market, and we are beginning to see “the light at the end of the tunnel” of this devastating pandemic. The epidemiological end to the COVID-19 pandemic seemed like an optimistic dream a few short months ago, but, with the development, approval, and rollout of several vaccines, it is now practically realizable in much of the world.

To arrive at the postpandemic era, in which populations experience herd immunity, vast numbers of dedicated individuals will need to continue working intensely in the months and years ahead. In this article, we consider elements of this enormous undertaking, the risks that are inherent, and potential means of further accelerating vaccination.

A common operating model of COVID-19-vaccine delivery, shown in the interactive, demonstrates the complexity of the task at hand. Essentially, the interactive is a qualitative risk map, showing the many stages of vaccine deployment and highlighting areas of potential failure as one party interacts with another. A breakdown at any point in the deployment process can set off a cascade, shutting down the entire system.  ... '