Now that some countries have started administering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to their citizens, the advice comes that anyone coming to Trinidad and Tobago who has received this vaccine should still pass a negative PCR test before taking it. country.
This decision was announced by Health Minister Terrance Deyalsingh, who spoke about COVID-19 at a press conference on Saturday. He said this policy came about after discussions with regional and international scientific bodies.
“The position we have come up with based on the current available science, everything we say this morning is based on current evidence, things could change as more data and evidence comes in. The position is that we still demand from everyone that Trinidad and Tobago to still give us a PCR test, ”he said.
He said Trinidad and Tobago could stock and distribute a COVID-19 vaccine by March 2021.
“We expect, based on current information, that if we start receiving vaccines from March, we will be able to store and distribute,” he said.
Deyalsingh outlined the government’s agreement with PAHO and the Gavi Vaccine Alliance to join the CVOAX facility, saying the ministry has since set up a local task force to oversee the vaccination rollout in the province.
However, with several competing vaccine candidates in the COVAX facility, he said, the government does not know which vaccine the country will receive. As a result, he said preparations have been made to receive vaccines with different storage requirements.
“Do we wait until we know that we will get a vaccine that must be stored at -20 degrees and then make agreements? Do we wait until we know that we will get a vaccine that must be stored at -72 degrees and then make agreements? Keep in mind that time is of the essence and international supply chains will be busy purchasing equipment. In the past week we decided to take the lead. Not knowing which vaccine we will receive does not mean we cannot prepare, ”he said.
The ministry, he said, has identified and isolated freezers from three to 72 degrees below zero that could potentially store vaccines in the public health system. These freezers are located in the Trinidad Public Health Lab (TPHL), Port of Spain General Hospital, and the Eric Williams Medical facility. According to him, all three units are being recommissioned and maintained, but should be ready to stock a vaccine by January 2021.
For vaccines that may need to be stored at -20 degrees, two subzero freezers were identified at Arima hospital, he said. He added that a visit to Tobago had been made last week by a task force representative who determined that Tobago could receive vaccines.
For additional storage, he said, tenders have been cleared through the North Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA) to build a chiller at the Couva facility. The government, he said, will also purchase additional chillers, which are expected to arrive in four to six weeks.
“What we need to do now is build a chiller in the Couva facility. I am happy to report that a board note to NCRHA, which will be the procurement office for that facility, they went to tender and interested individuals have already received their packages to build the 2-8 degree chiller in Couva. We hope that when everything is equal we will be ready with that chiller in Couva by mid to late February. To that end, we are also ordering more -72 and more -20 freezers, quotes for those close on Tuesday and we hope to issue the purchase orders for those sometime next week before Christmas. Suppliers have told us delivery time is about four weeks, ” said Deyalsingh.
Facilities in every regional health authority, he said, were being evaluated for their ability to receive and administer vaccines. Resuscitation facilities, he said, were the ones chosen to administer vaccines in the event of an adverse reaction to the vaccine.
He quoted from a World Health Organization statement released yesterday, noting that COVAX works with four roads to produce two billion doses of a vaccine.
According to WHO, this includes 170 million doses of the AstraZeneca / Oxford candidate, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Johnson & Johnson for 500 million doses of the Janssen candidate, an agreement with the Serum Institute of India (SII) for 200 million doses with options for up to 900 million more doses, and a letter of intent for 200 million doses of the Sanofi / GSK vaccine candidate.
“In addition, COVAX also has – through R&D partnership agreements – the first right of refusal in 2021 to access potentially more than a billion doses (based on current estimates of the manufacturing processes under development) that will be produced, under reservation of technical success. and regulatory approval by candidates in the COVAX R&D Portfolio, ”the statement said.
Deyalsingh added that the goal of the COVAX facility to end the acute phase of the pandemic, characterized by high mortality and caseload, will be achieved by the administration of these vaccines.