Two more pharmaceutical companies are interested in supplying the Philippines COVID-19 vaccine by the latter half of 2021, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez said on Friday, December 18. 

Romualdez said US-based Moderna and Arcturus Therapeutics are willing to set aside between 4 to 25 million doses of their vaccines starting in the 3rd quarter of next year “should the Philippine government find their proposals willing.”

“We are hoping our government will consider the promising candidates of Moderna and Arcturus for inclusion in our country’s pool of anti-COVID vaccines,” he said. 

Moderna is already in the initial negotiation stages with the Philippine government for the possible purchase of its vaccines, while Arcturus has not yet been included in the country’s vaccine portfolio for either trials or procurement. 

More opportunities

Romualdez’s announcement provides the Philippines with an additional option for vaccines, on top of 22 other potential candidates. 

Rowena Guevara, Department of Science and Technology Undersecretary for research and development, said the government is interested in multiple vaccines to cover both the need to have different vaccine platforms and ensure adequate supply for the country. 

Guevara said different kinds of vaccines, such as those that use RNA, live attenuated, or vector vaccine platforms are needed to cater to different kinds of people who would receive the anti-COVID shot. 

“Right now we are more worried about the supply because if you look at the availability of these vaccines that are ready for 2021, it is not enough for the entire world population. We have to prioritize and to that effect, we need to make sure we can get as many vaccines as we can from all the types of platforms,” she added.

A recent study published in the BMJ medical journal found that based on advance purchase commitments, high income countries already reserved over half of doses to be supplied by 13 leading manufacturers. 

“Even if all 13 of these vaccine manufacturers were to succeed in reaching their maximum production capacity, at least a fifth of the world’s population would not have access to vaccines until 2022,” it said. – Rappler.com