Vaccine, Coronavirus, Covid (Photo: Pexels)
With the approval of the House of Representatives on an amendment to the law to allow business owners to purchase Vaccines Against covid-19 that has not been adopted by Anvisa, Brazil is moving towards a shortlist of countries that have abandoned the immunization strategy exclusively offered by the public network. The amendment, which still needs Senate approval, is viewed with concern by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), as it may favor inequality. It also goes against the will of a large part of the world’s population.
According to a survey conducted by the University of Oxford and ten other institutions in 13 countries, most people believe that vaccination against the Corona virus should only be done by governments. The opening of the service to private clinics has been contested by at least two-thirds of the population of each country. The survey included 18 researchers who interviewed 15,500 adults from 13 countries on five continents, including Brazil. Among the Brazilians interviewed, 68% believe that the purchase and distribution of vaccines should be done by the government, while 23% believe that the private sector can be part of the mission. Only 2% believe that the private sector should be fully responsible for operating vaccination.
Although the majority of people in low- and middle-income countries believe that the responsibility for vaccination should rest with the government, these people are more than willing to pay for faster access to the immune system. In Uganda and India, 79% of respondents said they would pay for the vaccine. In Brazil, the index was 54%. The lowest numbers were recorded in France (18%) and the United Kingdom (30%). “If vaccines against covid-19 are specifically designated, policies will be necessary to ensure that a country’s ability to obtain the doses needed for government-run vaccination campaigns is not impaired. Ideally, private access would complement public services to maximize health and economic gains. Of vaccination and reducing the possibility of corruption, “the researchers write.
Special vaccinationIndia, Mexico, Pakistan, Thailand, the Philippines, and Colombia are the countries that allow the private sector to purchase vaccines. In Colombia, the doses should be distributed free, but other countries allow the immune system to be sold.
However, many governments indicate that the private sector will struggle to purchase vaccines because the global race to supply is fierce, and pharmaceutical companies prefer to sell them directly to governments. Countries that allow vaccines to be sold in private clinics and hospitals also introduce immunization into the public health system.
In India, the cost of a vaccine dose against covid-19 is approximately Rs 250 (R $ 18.65). Pakistan is not limiting the sale of vaccines to people at risk. For this reason, the country’s youth are in a race to secure a dose of their immune system and many vaccination points are quickly out of stock.
The Thai government agrees to involve the private sector in the vaccination campaign. According to the local press, legal barriers are preventing entrepreneurs from importing vaccines, but the country’s prime minister has pledged to break the impasse. The expectation is that a dose of the vaccine against Covid-19 costs between 2,000 and 4,000 baht (357.66 Rials to 715.32 Rials).
In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte authorized the private sector last month to buy vaccines and did not specify the dose. Malaysia is on the way to free the private sector from entering the vaccine struggle. However, the government has warned that even with permission, the procurement process may face obstacles, as the global race to supply is extremely fierce.
