Vaccine for private clinics

COVID-19 vaccine for the private sector. AMLO said that the vaccine distribution plan includes those who are working in the private healthcare sector. “It is going to be applied to doctors, nurses and health workers in the public and private sectors who treat COVID-19, although private hospitals do not have that many beds. In any case, those who work and treat COVID-19 in private hospitals will have the vaccine.” He also stated that he is not opposed to private groups and companies selling vaccines, but that will only happen when there are more vaccines in the market. So far, no private groups or companies have made the request to import vaccines.

MEXICO CITY -- Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Monday he is not opposed to private companies buying coronavirus vaccines to distribute to patients who want to pay for the shots.

But he noted there isn’t much existing supply and warned companies not to try to buy vaccines already promised to the Mexican government.

“We are not opposed to commercializing the vaccine, to companies importing it and selling it to those who can pay,” López Obrador said. “The catch is the supply of vaccines in the world markets, because there still isn't enough production."

“We would be opposed if the ones we have under contract were to be given to a private company, that we would not permit and we would file a complaint,” he said.

Mexico's medical safety commission must grant approval for any vaccine. López Obrador said no company has yet applied to import vaccines privately.

But the issue is already clearly in the public arena, and experts have warned that fakes, frauds and thefts may start popping up amid the public's desperation to get a vaccine.

Wal-Mart de Mexico, the nation's largest retailer, had to issue a statement Monday denying a photo ad circulating online that depicts a coronavirus “vaccine” supposedly available for about $20.

“We are making clear that the information circulating on social media regarding a supposed supply of COVID-19 vaccine in our Mexico stores is false,” said a statement posted on the company's Twitter account.

López Obrador has been criticized by some in Mexico for centralizing vaccine purchases and distribution and for putting the effort — like many programs in his administration — in the hands of the military.

He says the military is best-equipped to manage the security and refrigeration chain some vaccines require.

The president has promised that vaccines will be free and available to everyone in Mexico, but so far the country has only received around 50,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine. To vaccinate 1.4 million health-care workers — the first in line to get the shots — Mexico would need 2.8 million doses.

The government is placing hopes on three vaccines now in or entering Phase 3 trials in Mexico. It announced that Novavax Inc. will be conducting part of its testing in Mexico. China's CanSino and Johnson & Johnson's Janssen Pharmaceutical business have also been conducting trials in Mexico.

Jreboll wrote:What’s the chance of being scammed?  During desperate times, very high.  I would check that the vial is properly labeled and the cap is intact.

Carry Bean wrote:More vaccines are nearing approval and those aren’t ones already contracted by the government.

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday set out plans to vaccinate the country's population and said the government hoped to inoculate the country's elderly by the end of March.

Vaccinating all "senior citizens" by the end of March would be a huge logistical challenge in a nation of 127 million people with shoddy medical services in vast rural areas.

"We are going to start at the bottom, where the most marginalized people live," Lopez Obrador told his daily morning news conference.

Lopez Obrador said the plan to vaccinate older adults in remote areas will rely on vaccines from Chinese company CanSino Biologics, in part because it requires a single shot and is easy to store. Pfizer's vaccine needs to be kept in special ultra-cold freezers.

Mexico has sought to order 35 million CanSino vaccines, with about 8 million arriving by March, officials say, though Mexico's regulator has yet to approve its use.

Mexico's vaccination drive would be carried out in 10,000 community centres serving small and remote towns and focusing on adults above 60 years of age. Medium sized towns and large cities would follow, Lopez Obrador said.

rafterbr wrote:Our maid is very mad.  She has had the virus and now has been told it will probably be 2022 before she will get the vaccine whereas the gringo's will be buying the vaccine.