Another jug ​​of cold water on the vaccination plan.

The Ministry of Health has informed the regional councils that next week it will receive only 56% of the planned vaccines (67% if six doses are given per vial, instead of five), due to a production problem at Pfizer .

So the Spanish Executive will have to change the distribution system and adapt it to the vaccination rate.

The Health communication, which EL MUNDO has accessed, stipulates that "next week the Ministry will carry out a distribution that, in addition to responding to equitable criteria, also takes into account the vaccination rate of the first week."

In other words, the ones that injected the most doses in the first days will be the ones that receive the most now.

This would benefit regions such as Asturias or Galicia and would harm others such as the Community of Madrid.

Asked about this communication, sources from the Regional Government Health Department have assured that "it is inadmissible to change the distribution criteria arbitrarily, penalizing proactive autonomies."

It refers to the fact that some regions, such as Madrid, chose to keep half of the vials for the second dose, and others decided to put all possible ones for the first, in anticipation that more will arrive.

"It goes against the criteria of good management and planning that should govern a vaccination campaign," they complain in Madrid.

This distribution is the one proposed on Thursday by the president of the Valencian Community.

Ximo Puig suggested that the Ministry of Health make a "flexible" distribution of the vaccines against Covid, so that the autonomies that are vaccinating the most are prioritized in the weekly distribution of doses, compared to those that have vials stored without administering.

The reason given by the Central Executive for the specific change of criteria is that in this way all communities will have "sufficient doses to, at least, administer the second doses to those vaccinated during the first week."

It happens that as of Monday the 18th, the 21 days established in the administration schedule with respect to the first vaccinated will begin to be fulfilled.

What has happened?

That Pfizer has communicated to the European Commission and the EU countries a reduction with respect to the amounts committed in the shipment that will be made next week of its vaccine to European countries.

"The company has justified this reduction in a decrease in production as a result of making modifications to its facilities," laments Health.

The reduction affects all EU countries equally, and the Executive of Spain, together with the rest of the EU governments and the European Commission itself, has expressed its "surprise and deep discomfort" with the company's decision, demanding that this incidence be limited to the shipment scheduled next week and that the committed doses that are not going to be delivered now be supplied "as soon as possible."

Pfizer has also been required "to adopt the necessary measures so that incidents like this do not recur in the future."

The company has responded that this reduction will be timely and will only affect shipments corresponding to the week of January 18.

If Pfizer were to send 350.00 a week, which is the standard figure, this would mean that next week only between 196,000 and 234,000 would be distributed.

Health ensures that it will communicate "in the next few hours" how many will correspond to each community.

The Ministry affirms that before mid-February "there will be deliveries higher than those established until the reduction that will take place next week will be compensated."

"All communities will see the amounts that correspond to you restored before that date," reassures the government message.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • European Comission

  • Madrid

  • Isabel Diaz Ayuso

  • Galicia

  • Spain

  • Madrid's community

  • Asturias

  • Vaccinations

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