The government is now allowing private entities to order vaccines from overseas, but they must be approved by the government. That was the word from Health Minister Chen Shih-chung at the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) press conference on Monday.
That was a change from the government’s initial stance that only the central government could import vaccines.
A lot of private entities are hoping to buy vaccines for Taiwan. That’s with the country facing a shortage of vaccines during its biggest outbreak since the pandemic began. So far, the country has imported less than a million vaccines for its population of over 23 million people… and less than 2% of the population has been vaccinated.
Initially, the government was reluctant to let the private sector order vaccines. But in the face of mounting criticism about the shortage, officials have changed their tune. An expert recently pointed out that the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act Article 48-2 says, “when there is an urgent public health need, specific drugs can be imported and approved on a case-by-case basis.” There is no rule that the central government must sign these contracts.
Health Minister Chen explains the government's stance.
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“The reason the government said that it needs to sign the contracts is because the process is very complicated. When the government helps out by signing the contracts, everyone will have legal protection. But if people want to sign contracts on their own, as long as the process is legal, we can discuss it.
I hope that the government can take responsibility for these matters as [we can provide] more convenient and accessible channels [for distribution]. We will do our best to find a way to resolve these matters legally.”
Chen says that private entities must also apply for Emergency Use Authorization, and make sure that the source of the vaccines and technical information meets the CECC’s requirements.
He says most vaccine companies sign contracts with governments or work with COVAX, the global initiative providing equal access to COVID vaccines. But since people have their own channels of access, Taiwan’s government is willing to monitor the process to make sure nothing goes wrong.