Health

India may get COVID-19 Vaccine by March 2021: Say, Experts

The world at large pins hopes that vaccines will be the next big thing to prevent the increasing curve of COVID-19. The researchers are currently racing to create one, but how long it will take to come to the fore is a curious question; and by what time entire India will get access to the COVID-19 vaccine? Where do we stand in COVID-19 vaccine development? These aspects were brought to discussion during Episode-9 of the HEAL-Thy Samvaad, organized by the 'Healthcare Advocacy Group' — HEAL Foundation in association with ICCIDD on 15th Oct' 2020.

India may get COVID 19 Vaccine by March 2021: Say, Experts

Safety, efficacy, and distribution without discrimination of COVID-19 vaccines are as important as its accessibility.

The world at large pins hopes that vaccines will be the next big thing to prevent the increasing curve of COVID-19. The researchers are currently racing to create one, but how long it will take to come to the fore is a curious question; and by what time entire India will get access to the COVID-19 vaccine? Where do we stand in COVID-19 vaccine development? These aspects were brought to discussion during Episode-9 of the HEAL-Thy Samvaad, organized by the ‘Healthcare Advocacy Group’ — HEAL Foundation in association with ICCIDD on 15th Oct’ 2020. 

While addressing India Vaccine Accessibility E-Summit in HEAL-Thy Samvaad and throwing light on — where do we stand in COVID-19 vaccine development, Dr. Suresh Jadav, Executive Director, Serum Institute of India, Pvt Ltd., Pune, said to Prittle Prattle News by sharing a press release, “India may get COVID-19 vaccine by March 2021 provided the regulators signal with the processes fast as multiple manufacturers are working on it. India is heading fast towards vaccine development as two manufacturers are already in phase-3 trial and one in the phase-2 trial, while more players are joining the race. Usually, vaccine development takes 8-10 years, but this is the third time we can produce this one in a short time. The WHO has also taken the initiative to make the process fast and easy.”

“We can produce 700-800 million vaccine dosages every year once the things are streamlined. Although 55% of the population is below 50 years of age, yet as per the availability of vaccines, healthcare workers should get the vaccines first, then people over 60 years of age with comorbidities followed by the rest of the populace. As far as Serum Institute is concerned, we will be ready with 60-70 million dosages of vaccines by December 2020, but that will come in the market in 2021 after the clearance of licensing. After that, we will produce more and more dosages by the permission of the govt.,” added Dr. Jadav
During HEAL-Thy Samvaad, while speaking on the COVID Vaccination & Consumers Rights, Prof. Bejon Kumar Misra, International Consumer Policy Expert, Founder, JAGOGRAHAK.COM, Editor, The Aware Consumer, said, “Definitely, the vaccines will be a vital component in finally addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the vaccine must be thoroughly tested before rollout. For this, the government should involve experts from across the sectors, such as experts from NGOs and private sectors. And the vaccine should be accessible to every section of society. Today, technology is the biggest enabler, which will help in this direction. In a nutshell, safety, efficacy, and distribution without discrimination of COVID-19 vaccines are as important as its accessibility.”
While speaking on the accessibility conundrum of the COVID vaccine in HEAL-Thy Samvaad, Dr. J L Meena, Joint Director, NHA, said to Prittle Prattle News by sharing a press release, “Of course, to have a check on the upsurge of COVID-19 infection, the vaccine is quintessential. However, the biggest challenge lies in its accessibility. The mechanism of the supply chain should also be redefined so that the distribution turns out equitably. For this, we need to prioritize the accessibility depending upon the populace’s vulnerability and take some strong action within the time limit. Effective governance is also required to carry out the judicious accessibility of the vaccine, which we have already.”
Elaborating on the status of the vaccine development during HEAL-Thy Samvaad, Mr. Samir Deb, Pharmaceutical Professional, Consultant Vaccine & Public Affairs Consultant, South East Asia, said, “Vaccine development is a burning issue across the world now. Worldwide, there are 40 candidates in the race of vaccination. In India, three vaccines are going in the phase-3 clinical trial. However, the COVID-19 crisis requires accelerated pathways for vaccine development. Proven success factors of H1N1 and Ebola have turned out as guiding principles in COVID-19 vaccine development. Union Health Minister has asserted that 400 million vaccines will be made available by next year. Hopefully, 20-25 crore population will get a vaccine next year. Ensuring accessibility for 80% of the population is a huge task, indeed.”
Recently, while attending an online WHO question-and-answer session, Ms. Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist, World Health Organization, reiterated the WHO’s stance against allowing the virus to spread unchecked to reach herd immunity, emphasizing that the concept should be discussed only within the context of a vaccine.
Adding further, she said, “Once we have a vaccine, we can aim to have population immunity — herd immunity — because you’ll need to vaccinate at least 70 percent of people, have them protected, to really break the transmission.” 
While moderating the HEAL-Thy Samvaad on Vaccine Accessibility in India, Mr. Atul Sharma, Founder & Managing Director, HealthScape, said to Prittle Prattle News by sharing a press release , “Historically, we never expected any unprecedented pandemic like COVID-19, but within a year, we are at the verge of vaccine development. And now, we are prioritizing how to allocate the vaccines to a high-risk population. However, vaccination to the only high-risk population will not work; we need to ensure the accessibility to 80% of the populace.”

This article was shared with Prittle Prattle News as a Press Release by PRNewswire.

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