Vice President Kamala Harris was scheduled to stand before United Nations members on Monday to discuss how nations will respond to the next global pandemic.
“At the same time that the world works to get through this pandemic, we also know that we must prepare for the next,” Harris said in excerpts of her speech received by the Associated Press.
Harris will broadly outline how the administration thinks the U.S. and other nations should consider focusing their attention. The steps include accessibility to health systems, investing in science, health workers and the well-being of women, and surging capacity for personal protective equipment and vaccine and test manufacturing.
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“We have been reminded that the status quo is not nearly enough, and that innovation is indeed the path forward,” Harris says in the excerpts.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the United States’ U.N. ambassador was also scheduled to speak at Monday’s event and set forth a call to action for the U.N. members to “build the pandemic preparedness architecture for the future.”
In addition, this week the Biden administration will mark its first 100 days in the White House. In a speech scheduled for Wednesday, President Biden will address Congress and highlight the progress that the White House has completed in responding to the coronavirus pandemic.

As the United States continues to make progress with vaccinating its citizens, acquiring vaccines are still a struggle for many areas across the world.