MANILA, Philippines — Pharmacies have yet to sell Pfizer’s bivalent COVID-19 vaccines, a month after it was granted a certificate of product registration by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
“The delay is in the availability of the cold chain (equipment) because the vaccine is required to be kept at minus 70 degrees,” Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said in a television interview on Monday.
Herbosa said it is up to vaccine manufacturers and pharmacies to discuss the logistical requirements of the vials.
“We will see how Pfizer will solve that problem, but it will be commercial (soon),” he added.
The FDA has not received any application for a certificate of lot release for Pfizer’s bivalent vaccines, according to the Department of Health. A lot release is an evaluation of licensed products before it is approved and released onto the market.
FDA director general Samuel Zacate earlier said they expect the vaccine to be brought into the country in July or August.
The FDA on June 26 granted Pfizer a certificate of product registration with five years’ validity.