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Clesio Andrade on the vaccine bought by businessmen: “They invited me, it was free for me” – PHOTO: PEDRO FRANCIA / SENATE AGENCY
ORIn a group of politicians and businessmen, mostly linked to the transportation sector in Minas Gerais, and their families, on Tuesday the 23rd they took the first of two doses of the Pfizer vaccine against Covid-19, in Belo Horizonte. They bought the immunizer on their own initiative and did not pass it on to the SUS (Unified Health System), as required by law. The second dose is expected to be applied to about fifty people in thirty days. The two doses cost each person 600 reais.
Former senator Clésio Andrade, former president of the National Transport Confederation (CNT), was one of the recipients. “I am 69 years old, my vaccine [pelo SUS] It would be next week, I didn’t even need it, but I took it. They invited me, it was free for me ”, he told Piauí. A source familiar with the case told the magazine that the vaccine was from Pfizer, but the laboratory denies that it sold its immunizer in Brazil “outside the scope of the national immunization program.”
According to the people vaccinated at that time, the organizers were the brothers Rômulo and Robson Lessa, owners of the Saritur road. A garage belonging to a group company was improvised as a vaccination post. THE Piauí He called and texted Rômulo Lessa, who did not respond.
The Congress approved about 20 days ago a bill by the President of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (DEM-MG), which authorizes the purchase of vaccines by the private sector, but determines that all doses must be donated to SUS until the groups are risk. factors – 77.2 million people, according to the Ministry of Health – have been fully immunized throughout the country. Brazil has vaccinated less than 15 million people so far.
Even after immunization of priority groups, vaccines purchased by the private sector must be split 50 percent with SUS, in an operation supervised by the ministry. The Ministry of Health sent a note in which it says that “the doses contracted by the Pfizer / BionTech portfolio have not yet reached Brazil. The laboratory’s forecast is to deliver the first shipment from April to the National Immunization Program (PNI), which is the basis for the vaccination of all Brazilians against Covid-19 ”.
The deputy of the state of Minas Gerais, Alencar da Silveira (PDT), was also vaccinated, according to reports from those present. Silveira told the people who were at the vaccination site, that she had already had Covid, but that it was that her doctor had authorized her to be vaccinated. THE PiauíSilveira confirmed that he had already caught the new coronavirus, but denied having participated in the parallel immunization. “I don’t know, no. I’d even like to, but I have a coronavirus, I can’t even do it, ”he said.
The group was reportedly vaccinated by a nurse who arrived late because she was immunizing another group in Belgo Mineira, a mining company now owned by ArcellorMittal Aços. In a statement, ArcelorMittal said it had never purchased a Covid-19 fighter vaccine from Pfizer or any other pharmaceutical company. “The company has never contacted Pfizer or any other company in the pharmaceutical industry to purchase coronavirus vaccines directly. Abertta Saúde, ArcelorMittal’s health management company, acts as the SUS vaccination outpost together with the Municipal Health Departments of Belo Horizonte and Contagem. However, ArcelorMittal is unaware of the actions of its professionals in acts related to vaccination outside the protocols of the Ministry of Health and the National Immunization Program – PNI ”.
In a note, Pfizer said that it “denies any sale or distribution of its COVID-19 vaccine in Brazil outside the scope of the National Immunization Program. The COMIRNATY immunizer is not yet available in Brazilian territory. Pfizer and BioNTech signed an agreement with the Ministry of Health for the supply of 100 million doses of the vaccine against COVID-19 throughout 2021 ”.
Following the publication of the report, State Deputy João Vítor Xavier (Citizenship), president of the CPI of Fura-Filas da Vacina in the Assembly of Minas Gerais, affirmed that, on Thursday, “he will listen to the Public Ministry, internal affairs and Defender of the People of the Government ”. The objective is to know if the CPI is competent to investigate the case.
* The report was updated at 10:41 pm on 03/24/2021.
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