TEGUCIGALPA.
With the statement that the Pan American Health Organization (OPS) is in talks with pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Modern to get your vaccines against COVID-19 For Latin America through the Covax mechanism, there is hope to have vaccines in the region in less time.
Honduras, which is part of the mechanism Covax, you would not be able to receive either of these two vaccines because of the cold chain required to store and transport them.
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Keys 1- The Honduran Social Security Institute has signed a contract with AstraZeneca to purchase 1.4 million doses of its vaccines. |
The vaccine from Pfizer that had already been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is already used in several countries, it requires a temperature of -70 degrees Celsius for storage; while that of Modern which can be approved in the next few days, it must be cooled to -20 degrees.
The Ministry of Health only has a refrigeration system between -2 and -8 degrees Celsius, and the authorities have determined that it is not possible to invest in a cold chain to obtain these vaccines as it would delay the introduction of another. vaccine to the country, so “it has been decided that the vaccines that the country will obtain are those that need to be refrigerated, not ultra-cold or deep-frozen, but one that we can store and refrigerate,” he said THE PRESS the director of Extensive immunization program (FATHER), Ida Berenice Molina.
By the mechanism Covax, Honduras will receive doses of the vaccine as a donation for 1.9 million Hondurans; while through the revolving fund of the OPS a similar amount will be purchased, the authorities noted Health. But according to the storage guidelines, the country could only receive vaccines that fall within the cooling limits, such as the vaccine from AstraZeneca, which has not been approved, and the Russian vaccine Sputnik V, which have greater progress in terms of their research.
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“The vaccine the country is considering must be kept refrigerated”: Ida Berenice Molina, |
Restrictive
Experts consulted by THE PRESS indicated that the lack of storage logistics for vaccines is a constraint to having them in less time, as vaccines that adapt to the country’s conditions can be expected to be approved.
The researcher Marco Tulio Medina He said authorities should consider a range of possible vaccines. “My suggestion is that we should be more comprehensive in terms of which vaccines we can get and what we can support Covax it can be crucial, ”he said.
He stated that the government could purchase cold chain equipment that requires these vaccines, such as other countries in Latin America. He added that there are many laboratories in the country that have these cold chains.
The geneticist Edwin Herrera agrees that there are several companies or laboratories that have cold rooms with -70 degrees Celsius, so the government could buy these vaccines without having to implement a cold chain, but rather outsource the companies that have cold rooms to store it. Herrera explained that the Pfizer vaccine can be used in the main cities in the country, where there are cold stores at that temperature; but transporting it inland would be complicated, so for the country the vaccine of Modern which is stored at -20 degrees.
On November 12, the Unicef and the OPS announced the tender and invited all vaccine manufacturers against it COVID-19 expects to have supplies available from the vaccine by the end of 2021 to send your proposals.
The bidding period was six weeks, so it will end on December 23 and the companies with which they will purchase the vaccines against the disease will be announced.
By the mechanism Covax, the OPS and Unicef they hope to provide at least two billion doses of vaccines to the more than 186 countries that make up it.