Government eyes 2 vaccine donors, inspects cold-chain facilities
TWO more countries are now considering donating additional doses of novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccines to the Philippine government.
Chief implementer of the government’s national policy on Covid-19 Carlito G. Galvez made the announcement in an online press briefing on Wednesday after his inspection of cold-chain warehouses.
He said he is currently not authorized to identify the two countries since their negotiations for the donation are still ongoing.
The vaccine czar said they will reveal details of the talks, including the number of donated doses of the vaccines, once these are finalized.
Currently, only China has donated Covid-19 vaccines to the government for its vaccination drive.
Galvez said China will be sending 500,000 free doses of Sinovac to the country as a gesture of good will.
He noted the Chinese government has committed to ship the vaccines once the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues an emergency use authorization for Sinovac so its Covid-19 vaccine could be used locally en masse.
The government is targeting to start is Covid-19 vaccination drive by next month after the expected arrival of the first batch of vaccines.
Meanwhile, the government is now eyeing four companies with cold-chain facilities to handle its Covid-19 vaccines deployment by the first half of the year.
In a press briefing on Wednesday, the Department of Health (DOH) said only 4 of the 20 companies it is considering for the vaccination drive have so far passed the government criteria.
Among the government’s requirements in selecting are the capability of a company to store vaccines, with different temperature needs, as well as capability to distribute the vaccines in different parts of the country, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III explained.
He said these standards will ensure the government vaccination drive will be centralized and systematic.
“Fundamentally, they should have the ability to store [Covid vaccines] with 2 to 8 centigrade; negative 20 centigrade; and negative 70 to 80 centigrade. This is important so we will no longer have to store [the vaccines] in separate places,” Duque said.
Also considered, he said, is the distribution capability and regional presence of the company to ensure the smooth deployment of the vaccines.
This is necessary since some of the vaccines being considered for purchase, specifically from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, require very low temperatures to remain effective.
Currently, he said among the “strong contenders” for the stringent requirement they put in place, Duque said, is Zuellig Pharma.
Duque and Galvez visited the cold storage warehouses of Zuellig Pharma and Unilab on Wednesday to determine their qualification for the government’s needs.