First 1 million doses of Sinopharm to arrive June 20-21
Chulabhorn Royal Academy (CRA) expects to import Thailands first batch of 1 million Sinopharm vaccine doses on June 20-21, according to its secretary-general Dr Nithi Mahanon.
Dr Nithi told Sutichai Yoon in a Facebook interview on Thursday that the batch would undergo 2-3 days of quality checks by the Department of Medical Sciences. The CRA will then distribute the vaccine on a non-profit basis at 888 baht per dose to interested agencies and organisations.
“The vaccine must be offered free to recipients, with the purchasing agencies bearing the cost,” he said.
The college will open an online vaccine reservation service on Monday, June 14. Organisations who have already sent an expression of interest would still have to register online for doses, said the CRA chief. Organisations will be prioritised according to four criteria: organisation’s size, social and economic security, Covid risk, and inequality. “Large organisations may not be allocated large amounts of doses at one time,” Dr Nithi said.
The CRA aims to plug gaps left by shortages of government-procured vaccine over the next 2-3 months. It plans to import a total of 5-6 million doses of Sinopharm in batches every 10 days. Meanwhile, the academy is considering whether to administer third-dose booster shots using the same or different vaccine at the end of 2021 or start of 2022.