PH eyeing deal for additional 60-M Covid-19 vaccine doses this week

Update

MANILA, Philippines— The government is hoping to secure a total of 100 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine within the week.

During the hearing of the Senate Committee of the Whole on Monday, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. announced the ‘potential’ signing this week for the procurement of 60 million more doses of Covid-19 vaccines.

Galvez said the Philippines has so far secured  30 million doses of the Covovax coronavirus vaccine, which he said is extendible to 40 million doses.

“Second, we cannot disclose all the other, but we are potentially signing the term sheet of more or less another than 60 million within the week,” he said.

“So all in all, we can secure already 100 million,” Galvez added.

He later cited the 25 million doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine that the government had already secured, 30 million doses of vaccine from British drugmaker AstraZeneca, and 25 million doses of Russia’s Gamaleya or Sputnik V vaccine that the government expects to obtain.

He said that the government is still active in talks with major drug firms such as Pfizer.

Galvez said he could not disclose the exact quantity of the Pfizer vaccine yet in public except that it’s a “very sizable amount.”

“We are very thankful to Pfizer for giving that commitment,” he said.

Aside from Sinovac, AstraZeneca, and Gamaleya vaccines, Galvez said the government also expects to get 40 million doses of vaccines from the Covax Facility.

The said facility seeks to speed up the development, production, and “equitable access” to coronavirus tests, COVID-19 treatments and vaccines.

“Covax is another 40 million because it is for 22 million people,” Galvez said, responding to queries of Senator Sherwin Gatchalian.

“So we’re talking about 125 million doses confirmed to date?” asked Gatchalian. “So that’s 125 million doses [that are] good for 70 million people?”

Galvez answered yes to the questions but quickly added that the government is expecting more vaccines.

[ac]