Gov't secures 108 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines
National Task Force against COVID-19 Chief Implementer and Vaccine Czar Carlito Galvez Jr on Monday said the government has secured around 108 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine after signing five term sheets with vaccine manufacturers.
"Out of seven companies, we have already signed term sheets with five and we have already locked the supply of 106 to 108 (million) doses," Galvez told President Rodrigo Duterte during their televised Cabinet meeting.
"By this coming February second week, we are trying to come up with the supply agreements with vaccine manufacturers, and we will also include the two remaining contracts that we are negotiating," he added.
Galvez did not mention which companies they have signed with but last month, he said they are negotiating with US pharmaceutical companies Novavax, Pfizer, and Johnson and Johnson, Chinese drugmaker Sinovac, and Russian medical research institute Gamaleya.
“We are expecting up to 146 to 148 million doses. This is excluding the COVAX (facility where) we are assured to have more or less 40 million doses,” he said.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III in the meeting also said that these vaccine doses are expected to inoculate around 70 million Filipinos.
It was previously mentioned that at least 5.6 million vaccine doses produced by Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca are expected to arrive in the country within the first quarter.
Galvez also proposed to Duterte to include the economic frontliners in the second batch of the government’s vaccination program.
“This was recommended by the Metro Manila mayors… The social services and life support services must also be protected,” he said.
Galvez said their full vaccination roll out will be by the third and fourth quarter.
“So we are expecting more or less 30 to 50 million doses during the third and fourth quarter,” he said. Ella Dionisio/DMS
