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PUTRAJAYA: The government is expected to ensure access to Covid-19 vaccines in the first quarter of next year, prioritizing the front-line ones, the government says.
The Ministry of Health together with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti), in a joint statement, said that so far the government has contacted eight candidate vaccines that are currently in the third phase of their clinical trials. .
“The vaccine supply is expected to be procured in the first quarter of next year and priority will be given to those who work at the forefront in the health and security sector such as doctors, nurses, police, prison and immigration personnel,” said the officials. two ministries. on Saturday (October 24).
This follows the first meeting of the Covid-19 Vaccine Supply Access Guarantee Special Committee, which was co-chaired by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr. Adham Baba and Mosti Minister Khairy Jamaluddin on Friday (October 23).
The two ministries also said they were also in the midst of finalizing talks with Covid-19 Vaccine Global Access (Covax), which has nine vaccine candidates under the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Gavi).
“The government has allocated a certain amount of funds for the purpose of purchasing vaccines through the Covid-19 Fund of the Ministry of Finance.
“The government remains committed to making swift decisions to procure a Covid-19 vaccine and ensuring that the country does not fall behind in accessing the supply of vaccines that has been approved and proven safe,” the ministries said.
In an interview with The Star, Khairy had estimated that the initial payment for the Covid-19 vaccine would only be around RM90 thousand, as Malaysia is not expected to get any global Covid-19 subsidy or financial assistance from the World Organization of Health (WHO). vaccine access plan as Malaysia is classified as a middle to high income nation.
Vaccination is under the Covax program, co-led by WHO, the Global Alliance and Vaccine Immunization and the Coalition for Innovations in Epidemic Preparedness.
It will involve higher-income countries that fund Covid-19 vaccines from their own national budgets, while low- and middle-income countries will receive financial support to access vaccines. His goal is to have two billion doses of vaccines available by the end of next year.
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