WRITE: Karina Valencia and Erik Rivera
Peru is close to ensuring the first purchase of vaccines against the new coronavirus, an epidemic that has exacerbated the crisis in our health system and, simultaneously, has put millions of families on edge due to the numerous deaths registered.
Detail. This was revealed by the Prime Minister, Walter Martos, on Sunday night, when he announced that before August 31, the Executive will make a payment of 20 million dollars to the Covax Facility initiative to guarantee the purchase of vaccines against SARS-CoV -two.
The Covax Facility, a coalition of entities led by the World Health Organization (WHO), will deliver 6.6 million immunization doses in the first half of next year.
The premier added that administrative procedures will be completed in the coming days to comply with all the protocols established by the WHO.
“Before the end of the month, we have to express our financial commitment (…) This is undoubtedly being coordinated with the Minister of Economy and Finance, María Antonieta Alva,” he told Canal N.
According to Correo learned, the first stage of vaccination will be aimed at the population that is in the front line of battle against the disease. Among them are health workers over 60 years old, the Armed Forces and the National Police, among others.
Likewise, the Deputy Minister of Public Health, Luis Suárez, said yesterday that the Government works in parallel in the acquisition of immunizations against COVID-19 under three different mechanisms.
He specified that the first is the eventual direct purchase from the producing laboratories, the second is via the international alliance Covax Facility and the last, the acquisition at a special price after clinical trials soon to be arranged in our territory.
For his part, Carlos Neuhaus, spokesman for the Vaccine Command, said yesterday that our country is already in contact with international laboratories that are in phase 2 and 3 of the development of the vaccine against COVID-19.
He added that several countries in the world seek to secure large amounts of antigens to curb the disease. “Here (in Peru) we must put on flies to get them as soon as possible, before the neighbor catches it. We have to be very agile, “he said.
PROGRESS. The representative of the WHO in Peru, Rubén Mayorga, said for his part that in order for Peru to acquire the vaccine against COVID-19 through the Covax Facility, it must invest about 20 million dollars on a date close to the fortnight of September.
Mayorga explained that the aforementioned initiative offers participating countries to deliver vaccines for 20% of the population “the first half of next year.”
To do this, the WHO coordinates with various laboratories that are currently developing an immunization against the new coronavirus.
“Covax Facility is capitalizing and asking countries to make an expression of interest. There are already 40 countries and territories in the Americas region that have expressed their interest, ”he said on Canal N.
“It is important that the laboratories that are selected to produce vaccines have capital and can develop and produce vaccines that are very promising, and the Covax Facility has a series of candidate vaccines for that, because some of them may fail,” he added.
When asked about the possibility of Peru purchasing a greater quantity of doses, he replied: “What happens is that the Covax Facility is an entity that offers equity and justice in the acquisition of vaccines. So, all the countries that participate are guaranteed that 20% (for their populations ”.
Mayorga said that the vaccine planned through this initiative would be aimed at people “at high risk of dying” from COVID-19, in addition to the “health population and first services, members of the Armed Forces and police agents.”
The projected cost for the Covax Facility vaccine is $ 10.50 per dose for each person. Since there would be two applications, the total value would be $ 21.
ANOTHER SCENARIO. For his part, the representative of the Carlos Slim Foundation, Arturo Elías Ayub, announced that the investment amount for the purchase of future vaccines from AstraZeneca -which works with the University of Oxford- will depend on the number of orders placed by the countries Latin Americans.
In conversation with Canal N, he announced that the antigen developed by the pharmaceutical company could be approved at the end of October or beginning of November by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, for its acronym in English) of the United States.
He added that its entry and application in each country of the region will also depend on the consent of the drug regulatory body in each nation.
“The active principle will be produced in Argentina, the finishing and packaging will be produced in Mexico, and from Mexico it will be distributed throughout Latin America,” he explained.
He added that to participate in the project, interested countries must contact the laboratory, which will issue a purchase order after an advance.
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