RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – While Minister of Health Eduardo Pazuello refrains from setting a date to begin vaccination in Brazil, governors, and mayors have decided to move forward and have guaranteed the start of vaccination against Covid-19 in January.
São Paulo governor João Doria has been saying since early December that immunization in the state would begin on January 25th, the anniversary of the founding of the capital of São Paulo.
Some governors were annoyed by the announcement, claiming that there could be a race to São Paulo by residents of other states.
On Friday, January 8th, Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes scheduled the start of vaccination in the capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro for the same day, while Paraná governor Ratinho Júnior stated that vaccination in his state should start from January 20th.
“We believe that by January 21st or 23rd, at the latest, the vaccines will start to arrive and we will initiate vaccination according to the priority group,” he said.
Authorities are optimistic about the two applications for emergency use made on Friday, January 8th, by the Butantan Institute and Fiocruz. The National Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA) has already announced that it will assess all documentation in up to ten days.
During a live streaming alongside President Jair Bolsonaro, Eduardo Pazuello said on Thursday that setting a date for vaccination at this time would be “to toy with the hope” of Brazilians.
In internal meetings, he has said that vaccination could start on January 20th, at best – therefore, before São Paulo – and at worst in the second half of February.
To avoid lagging behind, other governors have also said that they are ready to begin the campaign as soon as the doses arrive. And they add that they are now stocked up on syringes and needles and that the logistics plan is in place.
An exclusive agreement signed between the federal government and the Butantan Institute on Thursday, January 7th, rekindled controversy over the date. According to the contract, all available vaccine doses must be delivered to the Ministry of Health, which will distribute them equally among states through the National Immunization Plan.
São Paulo Secretary of Health Jean Gorinchteyn, however, explained that this clause is common practice in such contracts and that it is normal for states to advance vaccination campaigns set by the federal government – which occurred in the influenza immunization two years ago, for instance.
The federal government comes in with the funds and the rules, but it is often the states and municipalities that handle the logistics. “All procedures and technical rules of the National Immunization Plan are observed, but São Paulo can advance the schedule, as it has already done several times,” the Secretary assured.
Source: Veja