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Minister Ricardo Lewandowski, of the Federal Supreme Court, released on Saturday (12) a letter that was sent to him in which the Ministry of Health presents, in a 93-page document, a national plan to vaccinate the population against Covid -19, but the text does not contain a start date or cornogram to make the vaccination of the majority of the population operational.
The plan, signed by the Ministry of Health on Thursday (10), lists 13 candidate vaccines, including Coronavac, which is being manufactured by the Butantan Institute, in São Paulo, in association with the Chinese manufacturer Sinovac.
And it estimates about 108 million doses needed for priority vaccination of health workers and the elderly, among others.
The 108 million doses cover 51 million Brazilians, less than a quarter of the population, today 212 million inhabitants. The government document recognizes the need for at least 70% of the population to be immunized to stop the virus, that is, more than 148 million people.
In previous announcements, the government had discussed vaccinations from March to June. The document does not mention the specific date. According to the ministry, the date depends on the registration of a vaccine in Anvisa and its launch. “Only then can we set a day and time. Everything will continue to depend on delivery and distribution problems.”
“In the first semester, depending on the number of vaccines available, the goal is to reach the maximum number of people per group. However, we depend on a safe, effective and scientifically approved vaccine by Anvisa,” added the advisor.
This Friday, the Minister of Economy, Paulo Guedes, affirmed that around R $ 20 billion are needed for the complete vaccination of the population, but that figure does not appear in the official document.
According to the text, “Brazil has already guaranteed 300 million doses of covid-19 vaccines through the agreements”, but, on this same account, there is a caveat that part is still under negotiation.
“Fiocruz / AstraZeneca: 100.4 million doses, as of July 2020, plus 30 million doses / month in the second half; Covax Facility: 42.5 million doses; Pfizer: 70 million doses (under negotiation)” says the document.
The Ministry of Health considered health service workers, people aged 80 years and over, after 75 to 79 years and indigenous people as priority groups in the first vaccination phase.
In the second phase, people from 70 to 74 years, 65 to 69 years and 60 to 64 years.
In the third phase, there are people with comorbidities (diabetes mellitus; hypertension; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; kidney disease; cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases; solid organ transplant individuals; sickle cell anemia; cancer; severe obesity).
In the fourth and last are the teachers, from basic to higher level, security and rescue forces and employees of the prison system.
Regarding the budget, the plan says: “The Federal Government has already made available R $ 1.9 billion in technological orders associated with the acquisition of 100.4 million doses of vaccine by AstraZeneca / Fiocruz and R $ 2.5 billion for joining the Covax Consortium Facility associated with the acquisition of 42 million doses of vaccines, in addition to R $ 177.6 million for financing and investment in the Cold Chain, in the modernization of CRIE and strengthening and expansion of surveillance of respiratory syndromes. $ 62 million to purchase an additional 300 million syringes and needles. “
The plan also includes a guide to centralization, with a list of tasks that are the responsibility of the federal government.
“The coordination of the PNI (National Immunization Program), including the definition of vaccines in national vaccination calendars and campaigns, the strategies and technical standards for their use. The provision of immunobiologicals defined by the PNI, considered strategic inputs. System management of information from the PNI, including the consolidation and analysis of national data and the feedback of information at the state level “.
Regarding state powers, he says: “The coordination of the state component of the PNI, the supply of syringes and needles, elements that are also considered strategic inputs, the management of the PNI information system, including the consolidation and analysis of municipal data, the sending data to the federal level within the established deadlines and the feedback of information to the municipal level ”.
In recent days, the government has been criticized for not presenting the plan and for internal discussion of ordering the Coronavac vaccines scheduled for distribution by the São Paulo government.