DEPARTMENT of Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said on Wednesday, November 11, 2020, that in order to expedite the acquisition of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccines, it has to be exempted from the procurement rules which prohibit advance payment.
"Yung sinasabi na bawal kang mag-advance payment . . . Pinag-uusapan yan ngayon and we have sought the assistance of the OP (Office of the President) para magkaroon tayo ng mas malinaw na direksyon kung puwede magkaroon ng special exemption from this specific provision of the law that (states) we cannot pay until the order is here,” Vergeire said in a press briefing.
“Many of the vaccine manufacturers and other partners we are negotiating with are requiring advance payment kaya ginagawan natin ng paraan na magkaroon ng exemption because of this pandemic,” she added.
Vergeire was referring to Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act which prohibits the country from giving advance payment for a vaccine.
Earlier, pharmaceutical companies, Pfizer and BioNTech announced that the Covid-19 vaccines they have developed were found to be 90 percent effective after their phase 3 clinical trials.
However, the said companies asked for an advance payment for the vaccines.
The country’s vaccine experts earlier approved the Covid-19 vaccine from Chinese firm Sinovac but it still needs the nod of the Ethics Board and the Food and Drug Administration before it can proceed with phase 3 of its clinical trials in the country.
These are the processes a vaccine manufacturers have to go through if they want to sell their product in the country.
In a televised press briefing, National Task Force Against Covid-19 Carlito Galvez Jr., who was also appointed as the vaccine czar ,said the country has enough money to buy Covid-19 vaccines.
"I believe we have the money and then meron tayong mga modalities. 'Yung ibang ano po natin, bibigay po natin through our budget. Alam natin sa Bayanihan 2 mayroon tayong allocation for testing and procurement of vaccines, mayroon tayong P10 billion," Galvez said in a virtual press briefing.
"Mayroon din tayong standby fund and also ADB and also World Bank assured us that they would help us for tinatawag nating self-sufficieny financing. Nakikita ko po wala tayong problema sa financing," he added.
He said the government aims to initially buy 24 million doses of a Covid-19 vaccine as soon as it becomes available. He said the procurement process may take at least six months. (SunStar Philippines)