First batches of COVID-19 vaccines to arrive in S. Korea via COVAX, AstraZeneca

아스트라제네카 백신도 2월부터 공급…고령층 우선접종 가능할까

In a matter of weeks, South Korea is expected to mark a milestone chapter in its year-long battle against COVID-19.
Some 6 million initial doses of the vaccines are due to arrive in the country,… with the first roll out possibly starting before the Lunar New Year holiday.
Lee Kyung-eun reports.
As soon as early February,… South Korea is expecting the first batches of some 1-hundred-6 million COVID-19 vaccine doses that can inoculate 56 million residents more than enough for the nation’s population of 52 million.
They are coming from the global vaccine supply facility COVAX and the UK-based drugmaker AstraZeneca.
They are two of the five partners the South Korean government signed contracts with.
From COVAX,… the country is expecting the initial batch of five million doses developed by Pfizer.
That’s half of what it’s contracted to get from the facility.
The COVAX vaccines are expected to arrive before the Lunar New Year holiday, which starts on February 11th.
Frontline medical workers are expected to be first in line to receive shots,… just like in other countries that have already started vaccinations.
The South Korean government has begun setting up vaccination centers.
Some 2-hundred-50 indoor gyms and theaters have been designated for the Pfizer vaccines that require cold chain storage.
The first batches of AstraZeneca’s vaccine are also expected to go out from around early-February.
SK Bioscience, which manufactures AstraZeneca’s vaccine in the country,.. will release the first 1 million doses,.. and eventually a total of 10 million.
The government says vaccinations will begin as soon as possible.
But the exact date and the priority groups have yet to be decided.
Final discussions are underway on whether to include elderly people,… as AstraZeneca has insufficient clinical data for that that age group.
Essential social service workers,… like those that deal with gas and electricity, could also be included on the priority list.
The finalized details of the roll-out will be announced on Thursday.
Lee Kyung-eun, Arirang News.

#SouthKorea #vaccine #COVID19

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2021-01-25, 12:00 (KST)