He asked the Ministry of Health Tuesday to decide on how it would prioritize vaccine access for the contributors.

The fund accepts contributions in cash or in kind, as Covid-19 vaccine doses.

A medical worker prepares a Covid-19 vaccine shot at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi, March 2021.

Chinh also told the health ministry to continue supporting localities and businesses gain access to Covid-19 vaccine sources around the world, using the government’s official guarantee.

Several businesses and organizations have recently proposed that they are allowed to negotiate and import Covid-19 vaccines. They have also requested that they are allowed to retain a certain amount of vaccine doses after contributing to the Covid-19 vaccine fund.

While the health ministry has been assigned to be the channel for importing Covid-19 vaccines, it also encourages localities and businesses to seek out vaccine sources themselves, health minister Nguyen Thanh Long had said at a May meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam.

Additionally, only companies approved for importing and selling vaccines can try to source Covid-19 vaccines. Those capable of gaining access to Covid-19 vaccine sources can do so either through the health ministry or the aforementioned vaccine import companies.

The national Covid-19 vaccine fund has received over VND8.2 trillion ($357.4 million) as contributions from over 486,000 people and organizations.

Vietnam has so far administered around five million Covid-19 vaccine shots, fully vaccinating nearly 450,836 people.

It seeks to vaccinate 70 percent of its 96 million population by April next year.

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A total of 1,228,500 doses of AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine arrived in Ho Chi Minh City on July 23 morning.

First batch of Sputnik V vaccine produced in Vietnam

VABIOTECH, one of Vietnam’s leading pharmaceutical companies, and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) on July 21 announced the production of a test batch of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus in Vietnam.

Over 1,000 second shots of Nano Covax vaccine administered to volunteers in third-phase trials

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Vietnam aims to have domestic Covid-19 vaccine produced by 2021

Deputy Health Minister Tran Van Thuan has stressed that Vietnam aims to have a domestic Covid-19 vaccine produced by 2021.

US to give Vietnam another 3 million Moderna vaccine doses

The U.S. will provide Vietnam an additional three million doses of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine via the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi said Friday.

Source: VnExpress