Trust Seeks $8 Billion to Fight ‘Inevitable’ Virus Resurgence

(Bloomberg) -- The U.K.’s Wellcome Trust is asking businesses to donate $8 billion this month to help fight the rapidly swelling pandemic that threatens to resurge even if the current wave is controlled.

Most of the money would be aimed at delivering vaccines, drugs and tests for the coronavirus that causes Covid-19, according to a statement. About $2 billion would be used to support vulnerable countries and build a stockpile of masks, drugs and other equipment needed to fight future outbreaks.

Economies are in the throes of a vast downturn as nationwide lockdowns hit all major industries. While governments pour trillions into relief and rescue plans, medical tools to fight the pandemic need vital support, said Jeremy Farrar, director of the trust.

“The only exit strategy for this that I see is the development of diagnostics, therapies and vaccines,” said Farrar, who’s also an infectious disease researcher. “That’s the only way we can return to normal.”

Stocks have been buoyed by indications that the worst may be over for countries like Italy, Spain and the U.K., where the rate of daily deaths declined over the past weekend. Yet any inroads against the disease can be wiped out if restrictive measures -- that both prevent transmission and damage economies -- are relaxed without the tools to keep the virus from coming back, Farrar said.

Meanwhile, scientists working on understanding, preventing and treating the disease are running out of money, he said. The funding initiative is called Covid-Zero, referring to a goal of no new deaths, cases or lockdowns.

Unlike SARS

The 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, ended after eight months because infected people were traced and quarantined, Farrar said. That’s far more difficult with the new coronavirus, which spreads stealthily in the community, sometimes from people who show no signs of infection. Even once transmission stops, the virus may return without diligent testing and other health measures.

The world “cannot assume that the pandemic will occur in one dreadful three months,” he said. “Because of the nature of this virus, it’s inevitable that you’ll see subsequent waves.”

The trust is seeking $3 billion to fund the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, Gavi, and groups working to develop and distribute vaccines. CEPI, which has already helped bring a shot developed by Moderna Inc. and the U.S. National Institutes of Health to human trials, said last month that it needs $2 billion to continue its research work.

About $2.25 billion is needed to develop and manufacture treatments for coronavirus, the trust said. While U.S. President Donald Trump has touted the effects of the malaria drug chloroquine, trials organized by multiple groups, including the World Health Organization, are still required to determine which drugs work.

Farrar said he’s hopeful regarding tests of antibodies that come from people who have recovered from Covid-19. They will probably begin in the coming weeks.

The trust is seeking $750 million for new diagnostics and the same amount to build stores of tools to treat future waves and pandemics. Another $1.25 billion is needed to bolster health systems in poor countries.

“The need to raise this money is critical now,” Farrar said. “Development of drugs and vaccines can’t happen overnight, and we need to have them for this wave and to prevent future waves.”

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