“The state made the decision to buy the vaccines”, says the secretary of ES

“Until now, all the vaccines that have had their data published have an efficacy much higher than 50% and all those that are being used in the world are of interest to Espírito Santo. The government understands that all vaccines that have already reached the phase 3 and they are having emergency or regular use in other countries, especially in central countries, they are suitable vaccines to be acquired. The State has already made the decision to acquire the vaccines, only to be available in the industry “, said Nésio.

The delay by the Federal Government in reaching a consensus on the purchase and distribution of vaccines throughout the country led the state government to contact the manufacturing companies directly. The idea is to try to anticipate as much as possible the vaccination campaign in Espírito Santo.

“We had the return of Pfizer on the possibility of selling doses to Espírito Santo, we are waiting for the conclusion of the negotiations with the Federal Government, which have not yet concluded. So, we still have the expectation that the Union can settle down and buy also all the doses that Pfizer has available to be able to sell to Brazil and immunize the entire population in an equal and universal way ”, the secretary stressed.

Nésio said the trade talks are also looking at the other possibilities of the immunizers under study. “We await the pending publications of the Coronavac vaccine and the registration of Astrazeneca, which may surprise us with good news regarding its performance with the application of one or two doses to the population,” he said.

Cited by the secretary, Coronavac is the vaccine that is being produced by the Chinese biopharmaceutical Sinovac in association with the Brazilian Institute of Butatan. “The state government also maintains contact with Butantan so that, in the event of what we recognize as the competence of the Ministry of Health, which is to acquire, store and distribute the vaccine, it is not produced, the State will have an alternative directly with Butatan”, completed the undersecretary Luiz Carlos Reblin.

Secretary Nésio Fernandes explained that Espírito Santo may have access to immunizers before any approval from the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa).

“We have a state standard: to be purchased without Anvisa registration, it is necessary that they be in use in central countries, with strict and safe standards, which can bring security to Espírito Santo,” he emphasized.

Despite direct dialogue with companies, there is still hope that the Federal Government will make the vaccines available to all states.

“We have a return that the negotiations of Pfizer with the Union were not closed, they managed to advance and we understand that it is time for the Ministry of Health, the Federal Government, to also fix itself and be able to make the integrity and national unity of the System preserved. Unified Health System (Sus) and the National Immunization System Program. That the Union buy all the doses available in the market to guarantee the immunization of the entire Brazilian population in 2021 “, he reflects.

The secretary explained that there is still no purchase by the private network, despite the dialogue between representatives of the clinics and industries that develop vaccines.

“We have, by the Constitution, the mixed model in Brazil: private activity is authorized in health and can participate in a complementary way. However, we do not consider it appropriate that the private network has access to vaccines and that the population as a whole, covered by the principle of universality of access to health, not yet. I think it is unlikely that the vaccine will be commercialized before the Federal Government can buy it and distribute it safely to the population, “he reflected.