Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – All the
three COVID-19 Vietnam is developing are currently in the stage of
clinical trials, and if they are qualified as assessed by the ethics and advisory
councils, the (MoH) will grant licenses, an official has
said.
Speaking at the Government’s
regular press meeting on April 4, Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen said the
three vaccine candidates are Nano Covax, Covivac, and ARCT-154.
Nano Covax has reached the third
phase’s mid-term review. Its producer, Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology
JSC, is supplementing data to its dossier at the request of the advisory
council, which will convene more meetings on this candidate’s eligibility.
Covivac, developed by the
Institute of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals, is undergoing second-phase assessment
and prepared to enter third-phase .
Meanwhile, ARCT-154, the first to be
produced using the mRNA technology in Vietnam, of the VinBioCare Biotechnology
JSC already underwent mid-term review of clinical trials on the first 1,000
volunteers and is now in Phase 3b.
As these are human vaccines,
they must ensure high safety and need full research and assessment, Tuyen noted.
The Government’s regular press meeting on April 4 (Photo: VNA)Regarding vaccines
for children aged 5 – 11, he said the Government had issued a resolution on buying
21.9 million doses. While discussing the
purchase with Pfizer, some countries and organisations expressed their
willingness to donate vaccines for children.
On April 3, the MoH had
meetings with the Australian Embassy and Pfizer, both of which agreed to deliver
vaccines to Vietnam as soon as possible. The authorised vaccines for children
consist of Pfizer and Moderna.
The Australian Embassy
expected that if procedures are completed quickly, the first batch of Moderna
vaccine can be handed over as early as April 10, according to the official.
He added a recent survey by
the MoH’s Health Strategy and Policy Institute shows that the rate of parents
agreeing on the vaccination for children aged 5 – 11 varies, from 60 to 80 percent. Given
this, the ministry has devised a communications plan and organised training so
that child vaccination can be carried out as soon as vaccines are available./.
Source: VietnamPlus
