IATF approves the national vaccine roadmap

The government pandemic task force approved the national vaccine roadmap and formed a new group to implement the immunization program in anticipation of the development of the life-saving drug.

The new COVID-19 vaccine group will be chaired by the recently appointed Vaccine Czar, Presidential Peace Advisor Carlito Gálvez Jr., whose duties include overseeing the procurement, price negotiation, storage and distribution of safe and cost-effective coronavirus vaccines.

The latest decision was made by the Interagency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases during a meeting Thursday, according to presidential spokesman Harry Roque.

“Inapubrahan din ng IATF ang Philippine National COVID-19 Vaccination Roadmap and Implementation Plan (IATF also approved the National Philippine COVID-19 Vaccination Roadmap and Implementation Plan),” Roque, reading the latest IATF Resolution No. 83, said during the “Laging Handa” public briefing on Friday.

The seven-point national vaccination roadmap was presented by Gálvez to President Duterte and other members of the cabinet.

The roadmap begins with the scientific evaluation and selection of the COVID vaccine, as well as access and acquisition, which Gálvez expects to be completed in November or December 2021. The next stages are acquisition; production, shipping and storage; distribution and deployment; implementation of a vaccination at the national level; and assessment, evaluation and monitoring. Gálvez points out that the third to seven stages will begin in the first quarter of 2021.

After the president appointed Gálvez as the vaccine czar, Roque said the IATF has restructured the National Task Force against COVID-19 to establish the vaccine group. The new group will include members of the executive committee and advisory groups, different working groups, with specific roles and responsibilities.

Due to the latest reorganization, Roque said that the COVID-19 Immunization Program Management Organizational Structure approved by the IATF on October 26 has been abolished.

The president had previously said that he wanted Gálvez as the sole authority to lead the government’s vaccine purchase and distribution effort. Duterte said he did not want the creation of committees that supposedly tend to slow down the process.

Also at the meeting, Roque said that the IATF has identified Gálvez’s 12 duties as vaccine czar in Resolution No. 83. His tasks range from facilitating the early registration of safe vaccines against the coronavirus, facilitating the acquisition and chain of supply and storage, until serving as spokesperson. on vaccine issues.

The Vaccine Czar’s Summary of Duties is:

1. Administration. It is expected to coordinate through various agencies, actors, and technical working groups on behalf of the Department of Health;
2. Safety and efficacy. It will facilitate the advance issuance of the Product Registration Certificate before the Food and Drug Administration;
3. Cost effectiveness. Facilitate the timely completion of the Health Technology Assessment (HTA), as required;
4. Price negotiation. The vaccine czar will activate the price negotiation meeting subject to the profitable price of HTA;
5. Priorization. Facilitate consensus on prioritizing vaccine recipients;
6. Delivery system. Facilitate the decision on whether to use a private system, develop a protocol on access to vaccines and registration with primary health care providers with Health Care Provider Networks (HCPN), practice guidelines;
7. Surveillance. He will establish post-marketing surveillance and response to adverse events after immunization (AEFI);
8. Financing and copayments. Coordinate with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and legislators, as necessary, on budget and copayment caps;
9. Obtaining. It will facilitate acquisitions through various mechanisms allowed by existing laws, rules and regulations through bilateral, multilateral and other financial modalities;
10. Supply chain and logistics movement. You are authorized to enter into agreements with a third-party storage and logistics provider, as necessary;
11. Information systems. It will establish the information and technology infrastructure to capture the information of the supply chain, as well as for the capture system for the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine;
12. Risk communication and community participation. You are expected to oversee vaccine risk communication and social preparedness and act as a spokesperson for vaccine issues.