Govt working to get second dose Sputnik V before 12-week timeframe expires

-no mix-up with vaccine orders

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Frank Anthony says the Government is working towards getting the second doses of the Russian made Sputnik V vaccine before the 12-week timeframe is expired.

The Minister made this statement in his COVID-19 update on Wednesday.

“I want to make this point as well. One, you have between four weeks to twelve weeks to get your second dose. We have not exceeded that 12-weeks, and we are working very hard to make sure that we get those second doses in before that 12-weeks expire.  

So, most people who have received their first dose vaccine, they have not exceeded those 12 weeks. We still have time; we are working very hard to ensure that we get those vaccines in and I am reassured that we will get it before that 12-week expires,” Dr. Anthony said.

He explained that the Ministry had made two separate orders for the vaccine to aid Guyana’s fight against COVID-19.   

“The first one was for 400,000 doses of the Sputnik V vaccine and of those, that first order that we placed, which was the monies I went to get from the Contingency Fund…

That would include paying for the 200,000 first doses and paying for 200,000 second doses.

Minister Anthony noted that Guyana has received the first 200,000 doses and a partial supply of the second dose from that first order.  

“We have received to date, 61,000 of those second doses, so we have approximately 139,000 second doses remaining from that first order…. In addition to that first order, we have also placed an order for 86,000 doses, additional doses which would make up 43,000 first dose and 43,000 second doses.

We have received the 43,000 first doses and we are now awaiting the 43,000 second doses. So, together what we have remaining then is 182,000 second dose vaccines.”

Dr. Anthony noted that the money for both orders of vaccines came from the Contingency Fund and later, the Supplementary Budget some two weeks ago. He also said the delay in the arrival of the second doses may be as a result of a spike in the Delta variant in Russia’s capital, Moscow.

“Again, I think you would know that yesterday I spoke at length about issues with second dose vaccines and vaccines generally because right now, there are various spikes around the globe.

You have in Moscow itself, you have spikes, new cases, especially with the Delta variant, and in Moscow they have increased vaccination. So, I think globally there would be an issue of supply. Nevertheless, we continue to work to try to get those vaccines into Guyana.”

Meanwhile, to date, 229,053 adults in Guyana have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Some 101, 246 adults are now fully vaccinated.  Minister Anthony said this is a milestone as the figure represents approximately 20 per cent of the adult population in the country that is now fully immunised against COVID-19.