Is the spread of the omicron variant linked to vaccine inequality? Since the introduction of the first COVID-19 vaccines, scientists have been clear that mutations could emerge if wealthy nations did not adequately share access to vaccines. While scientists are still looking into the origins of omicron, and the latest evidence does not point to where it was first sequenced in southern Africa, the fact remains that much of the developing world is still struggling to gain access to COVID-19 vaccines. How can we solve this problem?

This week the world saw a glimpse of what is happening in India: Photographs of mass cremations on rooftops, patients sleeping on the sidewalks outside of full hospitals, and people begging the world to send much needed aid, especially oxygen. How did COVID-19 surge so quickly in India and what can we do to help?