2020 Articles

Out of Many, One: Collaborating is the Way to Accelerate COVID 19 Vaccine Development

Loike, John D.; Cobb, Matthew; Williams, Patricia; Pollack, Robert

The article titled "Out of Many, One: Collaborating is the Way to Accelerate COVID-19 Vaccine Development," authored by John Loike, Matthew Cobb, Patricia J. Williams, and Robert Pollack, emphasizes the importance of global collaboration in the rapid development of vaccines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors argue that the traditional competitive approach to drug development, characterized by stringent intellectual property protections, is inadequate in the face of a global health crisis.

They advocate for a temporary suspension of patents and intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines to facilitate open sharing of research data and technologies among pharmaceutical companies and research institutions. This collaboration is deemed essential to expedite the development, testing, and distribution of effective vaccines. The article highlights the need for coordinated efforts to overcome the challenges at each stage of vaccine development, from lab research to clinical trials, and underscores the potential economic benefits of such collaboration, which could ultimately save lives and restore global economic stability.

By leveraging the collective knowledge and resources of the global scientific community, the authors believe that the process of developing and deploying a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine can be significantly accelerated.