Ukraine will receive 1,8 million doses of the vaccine against COVID-19 under the contract signed by the Ministry of Health with the Chinese company Sinovac Biotech.
This was reported in the press service of the Office of the President.
The cost of a dose is UAH 504. It is expected to be delivered as soon as possible - the first batch of the vaccine in the amount of 700 thousand doses should be delivered to Ukraine within 30 days after the official registration.
As indicated, the Ministry of Health has been conducting negotiations since September 2020. "The difficulty in conducting negotiations is due to the fierce global competition for really high-quality and safe vaccines. Without exception, all the civilized states of the world are trying to agree on the purchase of such a vaccine in conditions where reliable manufacturers cannot yet fully satisfy global demand," the President's Office noted.
It is reported that Sinovac Biotech is the largest Chinese company producing vaccines. Every year, it produces from 300 to 500 million doses of vaccines, which are approved in 34 countries of the world. The company developed and brought to the market vaccines against hepatitis A and B, influenza viruses, including avian, mumps. "Turkey, in particular, has already taken the decision to purchase the Sinovac Biotech vaccine against COVID-19 in the amount of 50 million doses," the OPU said.
"Ukraine will use the Sinovac Biotech vaccine to protect, first of all, those citizens who have a critical risk of infection and those who perform critical functions in the fight against the pandemic. Vaccinations will be free of charge," the OPU added.
Volodymyr Zelensky noted that the contract was concluded with an experienced vaccine manufacturer.
"The main thing is that we conducted very active negotiations over many months and got a concrete result. In a short time, we will start a large-scale state vaccination program. We really need to protect the most "risky" social groups, and the state will definitely fulfill this task," the President said.
The Sinovac Biotech vaccine (CoronaVac), as noted, is an inactivated vaccine that is dispensed in a syringe and stored at a temperature of +2 to +8 degrees Celsius. Conducted clinical trials in different countries, according to the results of intermediate data, showed the effectiveness of the drug up to 97%. Thus, the III phase of clinical trials was conducted in Indonesia (1600 patients, efficiency 97%) and Turkey (1325 patients, efficiency 91%). The III phase of clinical trials in Brazil is coming to an end, interim results are expected on January 7, 2021.
"Accordingly, it is planned to obtain permission for the use of the drug in China and other countries in January next year, and the vaccine will be submitted for prequalification at the WHO in February 2021," the message says.
As noted, "a contract on supplies to the territory of our state was signed with the Ukrainian pharmaceutical company JSC Lekhim, which, according to the official confirmation of the Sinovac Biotech company, is the only authorized representative of the vaccine manufacturer in Ukraine."
"Such supplies will be carried out separately from the COVAX mechanism, according to which our country is guaranteed to receive 8 million doses of the vaccine for free. "Ukraine continues an active negotiation process with all reliable manufacturers in order to increase the access of Ukrainians to an effective and safe vaccine," the OPU concluded.
As a reminder, earlier ElitExpert dealt with What vaccines can Ukraine receive according to the COVAX mechanism?.
