The Philippines Schedules Clinical Trials of Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine for October

MANILA, KOMPAS.com – Clinical trials for Russia’s coronavirus vaccine in the Philippines is planned for October.

The country’s Presidential Spokesperson also shared that President Rodrigo Duterte is scheduled to be inoculated as early as May 2021.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced the latest Covid-19 updates a day after Philippine scientists met with Gamaleya representatives to discuss trials and information about the inoculation.

Read also: It’s Official! Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine Registered and Ready for Use

Research facility Gamaleya is Russia’s coronavirus vaccine developer.

Russia on Tuesday became the world's first country to grant regulatory approval for a Covid-19 vaccine, to be named “Sputnik V” in homage to the Soviet Union’s launch of the world’s first satellite.

But its decision to grant approval before completing trials has raised concerns among some experts, who fear it may be putting national prestige before safety.

Read also: China's Covid-19 Vaccine Brought to Indonesia for Phase 3 Clinical Trials

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told Reuters that all clinical trials would need to go through the regulatory process.

Phase 3 clinical trials in the Philippines are due to run from October to March 2021, after a panel of vaccine experts completes its review on Russia's Phases 1 and 2 trials in September, Roque told a media briefing.

Duterte is keen to access a vaccine and in July made a plea to China to make the Philippines a priority if it develops one.

Read also: Indonesian, Chinese Foreign Ministers Discuss Covid-19 Vaccine, Economic Recovery

The president has pledged that the Philippines, which suffered its biggest economic contraction in nearly three decades, would be "back to normal" by December even as it has been reporting record numbers of daily coronavirus infections since July.

The novel coronavirus has infected more than 143,000 people and killed 2,404 in the Philippines.

A strict coronavirus lockdown recently reintroduced in and around the capital Manila is unlikely to be extended beyond August 18, the presidential spokesman said.

(Writers: Neil Jerome Morales, Karen Lema | Editor: Ed Davies)

Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-russia-vaccine-phi/philippines-eyes-clinical-trials-for-russian-covid-19-vaccine-in-october-idUSKCN2590GV