The International Commission of Jurists concludes that two UN treaties require countries to cooperate with removing the patent obstacles to making vaccines.

These treaties have been ratified by around 170 countries. The US is not one of them, but that's not a problem since the US is already in favor of doing this.

The NIH is disputing with Moderna the rights to the patents that Moderna has applied for. If it wins the inclusion of its scientists among the inventors, it will get the power to license manufacture of vaccines.