PH TO SIGN SUPPLY DEAL FOR 30-M NOVAVAX DOSES

THE Philippines will finally sign on Wednesday a supply agreement with Novavax for its vaccine against Covid-19, Malacañang said on Tuesday.

In a virtual news briefing, Palace spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said the deal would cover 30-million Novavax Covid-19 shots.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. earlier said he was going to India to sign the supply agreement.

Galvez added that the Philippines might also sign a supply agreement for doses of AstraZeneca and Covishield vaccines manufactured by the Serum Institute of India.

The Philippines earlier received 500,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines from the World Health Organization-led Covax Facility.

The vaccines developed by Novavax and AstraZeneca are being manufactured by Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer.

An early data readout in January from its United Kingdom trial showed the vaccine to be around 96 percent effective against the original coronavirus and around 86 percent effective against the now widely circulating variant first discovered in Britain.

Novavax completed enrollment of its 30,000-subject, US-based trial in February.

Meanwhile, Roque said the government has signed a purchase order for 1 million doses from China’s Sinovac Biotech and a supply agreement for 13 million doses from another American drugmaker, Moderna Inc., which would add to the country’s Covid-19 vaccine supply.

This is aside from 600,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines that were donated by the Chinese government and arrived in the country last week.

Currently, the government only has a supply agreement with AstraZeneca for the procurement of 17 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine that will be paid for by the private sector and local government units.

It plans to give free inoculation to 70 million Filipinos to reach herd immunity.