Thailand to start Covid-19 vaccinations in May 2021
A possible end to the pandemic is in sight. Thailand will start Covid-19 vaccinations in May 2021, according to the Department of Disease Control. The department released a plan on administering the vaccine produced by pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University.
Thailand recently signed a 6 billion baht deal to buy 26 million doses of the vaccine which would be enough to vaccinate 13 million people. The company Siam Bioscience lined up to receive technology developed by Oxford University to produce the vaccine in Thailand. Siam Bioscience has the capacity to produce 180 million to 200 million doses per year, enough to distribute throughout Southeast Asia.
Vaccination centres are planned to be set up in more than 10,000 sub districts which will prevent overcrowding at hospitals. Medical staff, young children, elderly people and vulnerable groups will be first in line for the injections. The vaccinations will be free of charge at government facilities while private hospitals can purchase their own supply, according to DDC director-general Opas Karnkawinpong.
Opas says the vaccine will go through safety and quality checks by the Thai Food and Drug Administration as well as the Public Health Ministry’s Department of Medical Sciences before it’s administered.
SOURCE: Nation Thailand
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