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The Minister of Health, Fernando Ruiz, spoke about the recent announcement made by the pharmaceutical company Pfizer and the German BioNTech, according to which his coronavirus vaccine project could be 90 percent effective, as evidenced by preliminary studies that have not been peer-reviewed.
And while he pointed out that recent announcements show “robust results,” Ruiz was emphatic that there is still a long way to go so that the world can have an effective therapeutic alternative against covid-19 and it is necessary to determine the safety and real efficacy of this project for it to be subsequently approved by international agencies.
(In context: Pfizer says its coronavirus vaccine gives 90% protection)
“This announcement from Pfizer is important because it tells us that both theirs and probably an important group of vaccines that are in development are going to show efficacy,” said the minister.
Ruiz pointed out that The Government has advanced a negotiation with this pharmaceutical company to access its vaccine and there is a confidentiality agreement. “We hope we can have good news soon,” he said.
Even so, he stated that in an eventual scenario in which regulatory agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States approve this vaccine “Colombia already has a plan in place regarding the process that would be carried out to be applied to the inhabitants of the national territory once it is available ”.
(Also read: Questions to be answered by Pfizer and BioNTech about their vaccine)
This plan includes vaccinating in a first stage to about 15 million people who are at higher risk of death: over 60 and those with comorbidities; and health professionals, said the head of the Health portfolio. “After that, the bulk of the population in the national territory would be vaccinated to generate collective immunity,” he added.
Ruiz highlighted the country’s experience in the handling, storage and logistics of vaccines and doses through its Expanded Program on Immunizations, which has been internationally recognized. He clarified, in any case, that the Government will not purchase single doses but based on the number of people expected to be immunized.
“In Colombia, vaccines are applied that involve several doses, so we have what is necessary for this purpose. We apply 30 million doses a year in Colombia, it is an issue that is not new”, He declared.
(You may be interested in: Pandemic fatigue: a reality you have to learn to deal with)
Freezing
One of the determining factors brought about by Pfizer’s announcement was the cold storage chain required by its vaccine project (deep-freezing at -70 degrees Celsius). In this regard, Minister Ruiz stated that “Colombia is working on the development of this technology in five cities of the country. However, the mechanism that Pfizer is using for these vaccines includes deep-frozen delivery to the point of vaccine application”.
He added that it is a very sophisticated logistical process that they have developed for this with special boxes, and that once at the point of application there is an average of 10 to 20 days of possibility of using the vaccine.
Specifically, on refrigeration, he assured that the Government had already held a meeting with the pharmaceutical company in which it was specified that they would cover the storage and transportation requirements.
(See: 80% of Colombians fear that the pandemic will not be controlled)
And in the event that it is not the Pfizer vaccine but another that also requires freezing, these would be deposited in the areas of these characteristics that the Ministry already has throughout the national territory and from there it would be immediately distributed to the different IPS for their application.
“We have cold rooms and all kinds of elements for cooling. There are about 15 places in the country where we have these capabilities “Ruiz pointed out.
Other vaccines
Regarding access to other potential vaccines, the minister recalled that Colombia is attached to the Covax mechanism, that will guarantee the country access to nearly 10 million safe and effective vaccines.
“The country is also in bilateral negotiations with several companies that are currently on the production frontier,” he added.
“Covax has a commitment to deliver vaccines as of the second half of 2021. With the bilaterals, Pfizer and the others, what we are going to seek is to buy vaccines to have availability in the first half of 2021, to anticipate the vaccination process”, Ruiz Gómez finished.
It should be remembered that these vaccines will be covered by the State through resources from the Emergency Mitigation Fund (Fome).
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