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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 26) Although the World Health Organization solidarity trial on COVID-19 vaccines in the Philippines is scheduled to begin in December, the Secretary of Science and Technology, Fortunato de la Peña, said the most optimistic timeline for having a vaccine available it’s mid-2021.
“If we can start the trials on their own, say even in early December or late November … between the end of the trial and the FDA approval for the application for use and the actual vaccination … it will still take some time “. Dela Peña told the forum of the Association of Foreign Correspondents of the Philippines on Monday.
“I think the original mid-2021 estimate remains the most optimistic I would say, unless there are other products arriving early that decide to get to the FDA for commercialization without going through our sub-TWG (technical work group). “, He said.
The WHO initially scheduled the trials for October or November. But in a recent meeting with local health, science and technology officials, the WHO said trials will initially begin in the US in November, while other countries, including the Philippines, will follow in December.
But for Dr. Beaver Tamesis, president of the multinational pharmaceutical company MSD Philippines, said that a vaccine by mid-2021 is “a little too optimistic.”
Tamesis stressed the importance of continuing the search for treatment and observing minimum health standards as not all 100 million Filipinos will have immediate access to vaccines.
He also said it was important to identify who would be prioritized in the COVID immunization program.
“Mid-2021 is a bit too optimistic. I suspect we have to live below our current normality for all of 2021 and the government has to prioritize, who gets the vaccine for the first time [who gets the vaccine first]Thames said.
“We must prioritize, we must select who are the most vulnerable in society, who are the people who are going to be protected so that they continue to provide service,” he added.
President Rodrigo Duterte initially said that the poor would be the first to receive the vaccine, as well as police and soldiers.
Meanwhile, health and science and technology officials said they were looking for health workers and the vulnerable, such as the elderly and those with existing diseases, to get vaccinated first.
Dela Peña said the government would assign vaccines to the homeless.
“From what we gathered, the government will purchase vaccines and assume, subsidize the necessary vaccines for people who are below the poverty level … But I am saying in terms of getting the government vaccines. We also anticipate that there are vaccines that It will be acquired by the private sector, those who can pay can buy vaccines and that is what we hope will happen, ”said dela Peña.
“But in the case of government vaccines, they are the ones who are really exposed, such as healthcare workers, frontline workers and those on the vulnerable side,” he added.
Meanwhile, Sanofi Pasteur Philippines CEO Dr. Jean Antoine Zinsou stressed the importance of managing adverse side effects during phase 3 trials and surveillance even after vaccinations.
He explained that, as in any vaccine development process, the trials would not be enough to represent the billions of people who would need the vaccine.
“This is a natural process that allows vaccine indications down the road, so we must admit to the fact that whatever the quality of a phase 3 study is, it will never cover specificity in the world, and therefore , there will be some indication along the way, “said Zinsou.
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