Galvez: Manufacturing complications delay delivery of AstraZeneca vaccines

MANILA, Philippines — The delivery of Covid-19 vaccines from British-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca is getting delayed due to manufacturing complications, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said Thursday.

Galvez explained that there are doses that will be manufactured in Thailand and while doses under the World Health Organization’s Covax facility will come from South Korea.

The Philippines is also negotiating to get vaccine doses from the Serum Institute of India, he added.

“Iyon ang may complication kasi they are working on a different manufacturing system and at the same time, iyong COVAX, iba-iba iyong mga manufacturing sources na pinanggagalingan nila,” he said in a Palace briefing.

“Dapat malaman ng mga tao na mayroong mga complications at saka mahirap iyong arrangement,” Galvez added.

The Philippines stands to get 9.4 million doses from AstraZeneca and US drugmaker Pfizer-BioNTech through Covax facility, Galvez earlier said.

Around 5.5 million doses to 9.2 million doses are expected from AstraZeneca, whose initial delivery is scheduled by mid to late February. Meanwhile, 117,000 doses will come from Pfizer-BioNTech.

EDV