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Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines : SL to order 5.8 m doses 

09 May 2021

  • SPC to receive purchasing agreement tmrw 

  • NMRA gives green light 

  • 95% efficacy rate: CDC 

By Maheesha Mudngamuwa    The State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC) is to receive the purchasing agreement for the delivery of 5.8 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer Inc. tomorrow (10), The Sunday Morning learnt.   SPC General Manager K.M.D.R. Dassanayake told The Sunday Morning that once the agreement is received from Pfizer Inc., Sri Lanka would sign it and officially place the purchasing order for 5.8 million doses.   “We have already signed the heads of agreement which is a non-binding agreement that sets out the key terms of the proposed agreement between the two parties, and Pfizer Inc. is now working on the purchasing agreement. We will receive it tomorrow and once we receive it, we will sign the agreement and place the order,” he said.   Dassanayake added that following the signing of the purchasing agreement between SPC and Pfizer Inc., the vaccine stocks would be sent to Sri Lanka.   According to SPC, the cost of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is around $ 6.75 per dose.  Meanwhile, on Friday (7), the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) approved emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in Sri Lanka.   According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it is said that based on evidence from clinical trials, the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is 95% effective against Covid-19.   It is noted that the vaccine should be administered in a two-dose series, separated by 21 days, and also that a series started with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine should be completed with the same product.   According to SPC Chairman Dr. Prasanna Gunasena, the country is to receive a total of 35,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine before June, and another 105,000 doses between June and September.    Moreover, another 4.5 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine would be delivered between October and December with financial assistance from the World Bank.   


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