Pfizer vaccine supply issues won't affect supply for M'sia - Khairy
Issues over the supply of Covid-19 vaccines faced by pharmaceutical company Pfizer as claimed by international media will not affect its supply for Malaysia, which is expected to be made during the first quarter of next year.
Science, Technology, and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar said according to reports, this problem would only affect this year’s production.
“I am aware of the supply issues, but the same media report also stated that the problem would...
Issues over the supply of Covid-19 vaccines faced by pharmaceutical company Pfizer as claimed by international media will not affect its supply for Malaysia, which is expected to be made during the first quarter of next year.
Science, Technology, and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar said according to reports, this problem would only affect this year’s production.
“I am aware of the supply issues, but the same media report also stated that the problem would only affect the 2020 supply. As far as I know, it does not affect the supply for the Malaysian government next year,” he said.
He was speaking during a question and answer session at the Dewan Rakyat sitting today.
He was responding to a supplementary question by Ahmad Fahmi Mohamed Fadzil (Harapan-Lembah Pantai) on whether the vaccine supply chain issues as reported by Reuters would affect the supply of Covid-19 vaccines to Malaysia.
Khairy, however, said if there were disruptions to the supply chain, the government will identify other vaccines from other companies. This is as relying on one company could open the country to risks of not getting sufficient vaccines for Malaysians.
Commenting on the additional costs that may be incurred in addition to the RM3 billion allocation, Khairy said each agreement with vaccine manufacturers would take into account costs such as transportation and storage.
“Our agreement with Pfizer for example, the costs we have paid for each dose also cover transportation that will be borne by the company,” he said.
Responding to the original question, Khairy said the government has so far signed two agreements to secure enough supply of Covid-19 vaccine for 30 percent of the population.
“The first agreement was with the global Covax Facility through the Optional Purchase agreement, signed on Nov 23 which guarantees a vaccine supply for 10 percent of the population, while the second deal was an initial purchase agreement with Pfizer, inked on Nov 24 to provide vaccine supply for 20 percent of the population (12.8 million doses),” he said.
He said the government will not compromise on the safety and efficacy of the vaccines procured and the final decision on the usage of a vaccine will only be made after it is registered and approved by the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency (NPRA) under the Health Ministry.
The 70 percent target of the Malaysian population to get the Covid-19 vaccine in the first quarter of 2021, will focus on adults to enable the country to reach the herd immunity threshold under the National Immunisation Plan.
To achieve the remaining target, Khairy said the government is in talks with other Covid-19 vaccine manufacturing companies.
- Bernama
