Gov’t Partners With Private Sector To Accelerate Access To COVID-19 Vaccines

The Ministry of Health and Wellness has partnered with private-sector stakeholders to accelerate the procurement and administration of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination for Jamaica.

This is being facilitated under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association (JMEA) and the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC).

Portfolio Minister, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, signed the MOU along with heads of the entities during a ceremony at the Ministry’s New Kingston location on Tuesday (February 16).

The MOU will see the Ministry and the private-sector associations collaborating to increase the availability of COVID-19 vaccines to support the safe and full reopening of the economy; bolster the Ministry’s efforts to procure an adequate supply of safe and effective vaccines for the population, and to increase overall access by establishing points within the private sector through which the population may obtain vaccines.

In his remarks, Dr. Tufton said the Government welcomed the partnership with the private sector “as we all share the common goal of ensuring we recover from this pandemic in a manner that sees our citizens safe and in the best health and our economy returned to full productivity”.

He noted that the partnership with the private sector is in keeping with the governance structure contained in the National COVID-19 Deployment and Vaccination Interim Plan that was approved by Cabinet and tabled in Parliament. This plan outlines the overall strategies for the deployment, implementation and monitoring of the COVID-19 vaccine(s) in the country.

“Yesterday, we got very good news from the World Health Organization (WHO), which listed two versions of the AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccines for emergency use, giving the green light for these vaccines to be rolled out globally. These vaccines are produced by AstraZeneca-SKBio (Republic of Korea) and the Serum Institute of India,” he said.

Dr. Tufton pointed out that AstraZeneca-SKBio has been identified as likely to be a significant player in providing vaccines for the regional population via the WHO COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access (COVAX) Facility.

“The good news for us, therefore, is that as a country we can move closer to the introduction of vaccines manufactured by AstraZeneca in the coming weeks, through the COVAX facility, as part of our (COVID-19) response,” the Minister noted.

He pointed out that the phased introduction and deployment of the COVID-19 vaccine(s) in Jamaica will be sped up through this partnership with the private sector.

The first of the four phases includes vulnerable and priority groups; phase two will involve other priority groups and the introduction of vaccines to the general public, and the other phases will facilitate more of the general population.

“This MOU allows us to move through these groups a lot quicker…it will enhance the arrangements that are stated in the [interim] plan because we are going to attempt to access more vaccines, and [in] accessing more vaccines, we can deal with the vulnerable quicker and the balance of the population in a much more speedier approach,” Dr. Tufton said.

He noted that, initially. under the COVAX arrangement, there is a 16 per cent commitment for Jamaica, which is 450,000 persons, but once the country can get additional amounts, which are being pursued through CARICOM, bilateral arrangements and the support of the private sector, this will “allow us to expand the offerings to the populace and, therefore, the take-up which can now hasten the path to herd immunity that we seek”.

Importantly, the Health and Wellness Minister noted, the MOU is not for the profit of the private sector “but to get the economy and the people… sufficiently safe, so we can get back up and running quickly”.

In the meantime, Dr. Tufton encouraged persons to take the vaccine when it is available, assuring that “while we are in a hurry, we are absolutely careful to ensure the process is safe for all Jamaicans, and these procedures and collaborations are a part of that process”.