LONDON – Frustrated by slow and uncertain vaccination patterns around the world, some of the nine million Americans living abroad are returning home to receive their Covid-19 shots.
For many, the risks of a long journey home are worth the reward of a vaccine that offers protection and peace of mind. But the journey also carries with it the anguish and moral ambiguity of leaving behind friends, colleagues, and even spouses who may not have access to a shot for months because they don’t have a passport from the world’s richest country.
“I’ve definitely seen talk of vaccine tourism,” said Chloe Zeitounian, a 32-year-old American actor who visited the United States earlier this month. “That’s basically what I did.”
The United States and the United Kingdom are roughly on par in vaccination rates, but recent supply disruptions have slowed Britain’s deployment for younger people. The country also relies heavily on a plan developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca PLC. Here regulators have restricted the reception of people under the age of 30 due to a possible link to rare but potentially serious blood clots. Ms. Zeitounian preferred to avoid it, which is not distributed in the US
While queuing at a convention center in New Orleans and learning she was offering a dose of Moderna Inc.’s two-shot vaccine, she called her British husband in London. “Is that okay what I’m doing?” he asked Mrs. Zeitounian, who was in the United States, to apply for a visa. He plans to get his second dose on a business trip to the United States later this year, unless he gets it first in Britain.