Pfizer doses to be distributed to Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao, other major cities that can handle jab’s -70 °C storage requirement

(Eagle News) — The initial 193,050 doses of the Pfizer vaccines arrived in the country on Friday night, May 10.
This was part of the first batch of a total of 1.3 million doses of Pfizer vaccines from the World Health Organization’s COVAX Facility expected this month, according to Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., the country vaccine czar and chief implementer of the National Task Force against COVID-19.
The Pfizer doses from COVAX arrived via DHL Plane Flight LD457 in NAIA Terminal 2, Pasay City, the Philippine government said in a statement on Monday night.
“The National Task Force Against Covid19 and the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) extended their gratitude to the generosity of the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) Facility for its life-saving intervention for the Filipino people amid the COVID-19 pandemic,” it said.
Malacanang said that this initial Pfizer doses will be distributed in the National Capital Region, Cebu City, Davao City, and other major cities that can handle the required temperature of -70 °C.
Galvez said the next shipment from Pfizer will be around 1.1 million doses, but he did not say when this will be delivered within the month. Another 1.1 million doses will be delivered in June, he said.
– Primary efficacy of 95 percent-
Pfizer which has a “primary efficacy” of 95% against COVID-19 beginning 28 days after the first dose, according to Pfizer in a release.
It requires ultra-cold transport with a temperature requirement of between -80°C and -60°C (-117°F and -76°F) in the thermal shipping container, portable ultra-cold freezer, or qualified container.
The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave Pfizer an emergency use authorization (EUA) on Jan. 14, 2021. It was the very first vaccive against COVID-19 issued an EUA by the FDA.
The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine is administered intramuscularly as a series of two doses (0.3 mL each) 3 weeks apart, the FDA said.
Each Pfizer multiple dose vial contains a volume of 0.45 mL, supplied as a frozen suspension that does not contain preservative. Each vial must be thawed and diluted prior to administration. Vials may be thawed in the refrigerator [2ºC to 8ºC (35ºF to 46ºF)] or at room temperature [up to 25ºC (77ºF), it said.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, unpunctured vials can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 120 hours or five days. Unpunctured vials may be held at room temperature for up to 2 hours (including thaw time).
The COVAX Facility under which the Pfizer and earlier AstraZeneca doses have been delivered is co-led by Gavi, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and WHO.
“Its aim is to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines, and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world,” according to a WHO primer
(Eagle News Service)