Biden administration shipping 3.5 million doses of Moderna vaccine to Colombia

The Biden administration on Friday is shipping out 3.5 million Moderna COVID-19 vaccine doses to Colombia, which will arrive in the South American country on Sunday, two White House officials tell CBS News. The 3.5 million doses represent both shots of the vaccine regiment, so will serve roughly half that many people. 

On top of the 2.5 million Johnson & Johnson doses the United States has already given to the South American country, this latest donation "makes Colombia the largest recipient of U.S. vaccine donations in the region," with 6 million total doses, a senior White House staffer said.   A White House official confirmed that in the past week, the U.S. has sent about 12.5 million total doses to Latin American countries, including Panama, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and now Colombia.  Through COVAX, the global vaccination program run in part by the World Health Organization, the administration has sent approximately 20 million doses total to Latin America, according to the White House.