Covid-19 Vaccine from China Will Cost Around $13, Says Indonesia’s Bio Farma

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – The Covid-19 vaccine from China’s Sinovac Biotech will cost around 200,000 rupiahs ($13.55) per dose, according to an estimate by the president director of Indonesia’s state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Bio Farma (Persero).

Honesti Basyir gave his estimate on Tuesday in response to the news of Sinovac and Brazil signing a contract on the Covid-19 vaccine which would sell it for $1.96 per dose.

“We have received a clarification on the price of the Covid-19 vaccine in Brazil from Sinovac. They already sent an official e-mail to Bio Farma confirming that the news about the purchase of 46 million doses of a potential vaccine following a $90 million contract with Brazil was inaccurate,” Honesti said in a press statement.

He also said it was untrue that vaccine would sell for $1.96 per dose.

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Honesti further added that Sinovac is currently investigating the matter. Bio Farma, he said, is committed to supporting the government’s efforts to provide the Covid-19 vaccine at an affordable price to protect the people of Indonesia.

In an official letter, Sinovac has explained the several factors used to determine the price of the vaccine, he said.

“One of the factors is that it depends on the investment in Phase 3 clinical studies, particularly in the large-scale efficacy trials. Similar principles will also be applied to the pricing scheme in Indonesia. In other words, the Covid-19 vaccine pricing scheme is not the same,” he said.

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In a bid to maintain and ensure the quality of the Covid-19 vaccine, the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) will visit China to monitor its development and production process of the vaccine at the Sinovac facility. The Indonesian Ulema Council Food and Drug Analysis Agency (LPPOM MUI) will also carry out halal audits in China.

BPOM will ensure the facilities and production processes for the Covid-19 vaccine at Bio Farma meet the standards for the Good Medicine Manufacturing Practices Certification (CPOB) and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP).

Currently, Phase 3 clinical trials of the Covid-19 vaccine is still ongoing. A total of 843 volunteers have received their second shot, while 449 volunteers are undergoing blood tests after receiving their second shots. So far, there has been no report of serious post-immunization accidents from the volunteers.

(Writer: Akhdi Martin Pratama | Editor: Sakina Rakhma Diah Setiawan)

Source: https://money.kompas.com/read/2020/10/13/131131426/bio-farma-pastikan-harga-vaksin-covid-19-di-kisaran-rp-200000?page=all#page3.