835,000 doses of Covax AZ vaccines arriving tomorrow

Produced in Italy

The MFDS approves emergency use in accordance with Public Health Act

AstraZeneca vaccine produced in Italy will be introduced into Korea as a supply of Covax.

 

Imported AZ vaccines are introduced through Emergency Use Authorization as they do not have domestic permission.

 

The pan-government vaccine introduction TF (Team Leader: Kwon Deok-cheol, Minister of Health and Welfare) said 835,000 doses of the Covax AstraZeneca vaccine will arrive at 19:00 tomorrow (13th).

 

Adding 7.23 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines, which will be supplied from May 14 to early June, and 835,000 doses, which will be supplied this time, a total of 806.5 million doses, and 5 million doses of vaccines, will fully support the first vaccination target of 13 million people in the first half of the year.

 

In addition, the remaining 835,000 doses of the Covax AstraZeneca vaccine, which is scheduled to be introduced in the first half, will be supplied in June.

 

AstraZeneca vaccine, which will be supplied through Covax this time, will be used for the first round of vaccinations starting May 27 under the second round of vaccination and the "COVID-19 vaccination May-June implementation plan." Some of them will be used for the second round of vaccinations starting May 14, and the rest will be used for vaccinations of 60 to 74-year-olds (born in 1947 to 1961), and primary vaccinations for teachers working in kindergartens, daycare centers and elementary schools (first and second graders).

 

The government plans to proactively proceed with administrative procedures so that the Covax AstraZeneca vaccine can be supplied to Korea as quickly as possible.

 

The KCDA asked the MFDS for approval under the Special Act on the Promotion and Emergency Supply of Public Health Crisis Medical Products.

 

The AstraZeneca vaccine is a product produced by Catalent, Italy, and is listed in the WHO Emergency Use Listing.

 

The MFDS approved emergency use after deliberation by the Public Health Crisis Response Medical Product Safety Management and Supply Committee, considering that the vaccine is already in use at home and abroad.

 

This is a system that allows importers to import and supply overseas vaccines if urgent domestic supply is needed to properly cope with the public health crisis, which is the same as special imports under the existing "pharmaceutical affairs law." The government later stressed that it plans to expedite customs clearance and transportation so that the vaccine can be used smoothly for vaccination.

 

Kwon Deok-cheol, head of the pan-government vaccine introduction TF, said, "We will continue to introduce vaccines through close communication with Covax and make utmost efforts to achieve collective immunity in November."