Brazilian Senate Confirms Release of Nearly R$2 Billion to Enable Oxford Vaccine

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Senate confirmed yesterday the decision to release almost R$2 billion (US$400 million) to enable the purchase and final processing by Fiocruz (Oswaldo Cruz Foundation) of the vaccine against Covid-19 under development by Oxford University and marketed by pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.

A Provisional Measure for the release of this extraordinary credit had also been passed on Wednesday by the Chamber of Deputies. Yesterday was the last day for the measure to be passed in both Legislative Houses before expiring.

The text was published in the Federal Gazette on August 6th this year. As a Provisional Measure, it had the force of law and part of the funds were already earmarked.

Fiocruz, linked to the Ministry of Health, signed a contract with AstraZeneca for the purchase of the immunizer. The purchase order provides for Brazil to receive 100.4 million doses of the vaccine.

The federal government’s projection is that 15 million doses will begin to arrive in January and February and the remainder in the first half of 2021. Fiocruz will be in charge of its final processing – formulation, filling, labeling and packaging – and quality control.

Later, through technology transfer, Fiocruz is expected to produce 160 million doses in the second half of 2021.

According to the federal government, the Provisional Measure provides that R$1.3 billion will be allocated to AstraZeneca and R$95.6 million will be invested in the production of the immunizer by Fiocruz. A further R$522 million will be directed to the payment of expenses related to the final processing of the vaccine by Bio-Manguinhos, Fiocruz’s immunobiological production facility.

The vaccine is in its final development stage, and still needs to be registered with ANVISA (National Health Regulatory Agency) before it can be distributed and administered. The federal government intends to offer the vaccine at no cost to the Brazilian population through the SUS (National Health System).

Due to the fact that the wording submitted by the government has remained unchanged, the text was sent for promulgation. The President of Congress and Senate, Davi Alcolumbre, said he would sign the promulgation and forward it for publication in the Federal Gazette yesterday.

In its processing in Congress, amendments to the original text suggested by legislators were rejected. One of them intended to transfer part of the funds to the Butantan Institute, linked to the São Paulo state government and which has a partnership with the Chinese laboratory Sinovac for the development of another vaccine against the novel coronavirus, the CoronaVac.

This immunizer involving the Butantan has become a point of political dispute between President Jair Bolsonaro and São Paulo Governor João Doria. In turn, the Oxford vaccine was selected as the focus of the Ministry of Health.

Senators criticize the lack of time and money for a single vaccine

During the session, senators complained about the lack of time for a more in-depth analysis of the Provisional Measure. If any point were to be changed, the text would have to return to the Chamber and could expire.

Senators, including governors, criticized the politicization surrounding the vaccine and the fact that the almost R$2 billion are earmarked for only one immunizer. Izalci Lucas said that a vaccine should not be subject to party politics or discriminated for its origin.

“It seems that there is discrimination, suffice it to consider this Provisional Measure: it seems that exclusivity will be for Fiocruz. The Butantan Institute, as was said, is now 126 years old. It does not belong to Doria, it does not belong to the PSDB, it does not belong to São Paulo. The Butantan Institute belongs to the country”, he said.

Senator Esperidião Amin recalled that no vaccine has yet been approved by ANVISA. Jorge Kajuru said that the Provisional Measure is a “trap for the Senate”.

“It is very harsh for one to be perceived as a traitor to the homeland if one votes against it. So you have to vote ‘yes’. In other words, it’s a trap for the Senate,” he complained.

Source: UOL