Covid 19 coronavirus: Madonna donates $1 million to fund working to create vaccine

Madonna has donated $1 million to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Therapeutics Accelerator programme. Photo / Getty Images

Madonna is donating $1million to help find a vaccine for coronavirus.

The Like a Virgin hitmaker announced he would be donating money to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as they try and search for a cure against the virus.

In a statement released on her website, she said: "I'm joining the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation effort to find a drug that will prevent or treat Covid-19. We need this to protect our health workers, the most vulnerable, and all of our friends and families.

"I'm talking about this: I am so impressed by the work of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Covid-19 Therapeutics Accelerator's urgent efforts to find new or existing drugs that could effectively prevent or treat the disease.

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"Harnessing the strength and knowledge of the research community, the Accelerator's critical scientific progress will inform how we end this pandemic and prevent future impact from the virus.

"I send enormous gratitude and strength to the courageous first responders, medical professionals and scientists who are protecting our communities, those suffering and our most vulnerable."

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website

It comes after Madonna branded coronavirus as a "great equaliser".

She shared at the time: "That's the thing about Covid-19, it doesn't care about how rich you are, how famous you are, how funny you are, how smart you are, where you live, how old you are ... it's the great equaliser, and what's terrible about it is what's great about it.

"What's terrible about it is, it's made us equal in many ways. And what's wonderful about it is that it's made us equal in many ways. Like I used to say at the end of Human Nature every night, we're all in the same boat. If the ship goes down, we're all going down together."