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The Ministry of Finance had more than $ 281,766,200,000 -more or less 82 million dollars- through the Emergency Mitigation Fund (Fome) to purchase the covid-19 vaccine developed by Astrazeneca and the University of Oxford, in accordance with resolution 2461 of that portfolio, known as EL TIEMPO.
And although the document does not detail the number of doses that could be purchased once the agreement is closed, It is the second vaccine that he hopes to reach the country in the middle of direct negotiations you are having with different pharmaceutical companies.
(Can read: Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine is given the green light in Chile)
Two weeks ago, it was learned that Colombia was preparing 437,188,800,000 pesos -more than 123 million dollars- to acquire 10 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer and Biontech, the same one that is already being applied in countries such as United Kingdom and United States.
It should be clarified that the resolutions described to acquire the vaccines from Oxford-AstraZeneca and Pfizer / BioNTech what they do is allocate specific resources to the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management and in turn to the Emergency Mitigation Fund (Fome) through from the Ministry of Finance, once the Covid Vaccine Advisory Committee gives the go-ahead.
This does not mean that it is a direct closing of the purchase, But as sources close to these processes told this newspaper, having these resources available is key in negotiations with laboratories because it gives the country strength in the midst of a worldwide demand for these vaccines.
(Read also: Five keys to the arrival of the covid-19 vaccine in Colombia)
About the Oxford and Astrazeneca vaccine
The AZD1222 vaccine against covid-19 developed by the British university and laboratory is one of the most advanced in the world. Last week, in fact, The Lancet magazine published preliminary results of phase 3 clinical trials and confirmed that this drug has acceptable levels of safety and is effective.
Specifically, a pre-specific group was analyzed in the United Kingdom and Brazil with 11,636 subjects and another of 23,745 individuals in the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa that added safety data.
The Oxford team found that their vaccine, administered in two doses (preparatory and booster), is effective by an average of 70 percent, although the variation in the amount of each dose affects the result. So, when a half dose is administered followed by a full dose, the efficacy level of the vaccine is 90 percent and it drops to 62 percent when volunteers receive two full doses of the preparation.
(Further: US says it will have surplus vaccine to distribute around the world)
Among the 23,745 immunized people, only three in an average period of 3.4 months experienced “serious adverse effects” that could be attributed to the vaccine, although all have recovered or are recovering and continue to participate in clinical trials, the experts explained. of Oxford in a statement.
However, the efficacy of the vaccine could not be evaluated in older age groups because there were not enough infections, according to data. Because older adults were recruited into the studies later than younger ones, they have had less time for cases to accumulate in those age groups and thus measure a signal of efficacy.
This vaccine, it is worth remembering, has not yet been approved by local or regional health authorities and the results of its phase III trials are lining up to be analyzed together with those of the modern pharmaceutical company.
(See: Learn about the three most advanced vaccines against covid-19)
How does it work?
AZD1222 has been made from the genetic modification of a common cold virus that affects chimpanzees, but does not cause disease in humans and is capable of expressing the S protein of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes covid -19.
In essence, this vaccine is based on the vector-viral platform that uses a designer virus to carry coronavirus genes and produce defense reactions in the body. In this case, a chimpanzee adenovirus called ChAvOx1 has been taken, which when tested in humans has been effective in terms of protection in people over 18 years of age.
This project has the great advantage of use a more traditional technology than its competitors, which makes it less expensive and easier to store and transport, since it does not need to be kept at a very low temperature: it can be stored for at least six months refrigerated between 2ºC and 8ºC, specified the British team.
Other data
The United States awarded the project $ 1.2 billion, separating 300 million doses, if approved. In the same sense, the European Union made agreements for 14 million doses and some countries, through collective strategies, have also negotiated. Brazil, which participated in the studies, reserved 210 million doses of this vaccine; Chile, 14.4 million; and Panama, 1 million, among others.
(You can continue reading: Why did they limit the consumption of liquor in regions with ICU crisis?)
HEALTH UNIT
