• APPROVAL: The López Obrador administration is expecting that Mexico’s drug safety agency (COFEPRIS) will approve the emergency use of Russia’s Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine in the coming days. The country battles to reconfigure its national vaccination effort amid the worst phase of the pandemic.
•DEAL: After having announced a deal to purchase 24 million doses, the Mexican government said it expected to receive next week a first batch of 200,000 doses of the Sputnik V. Some medical experts have expressed concern about the Russian vaccine not having completed the Phase III trial.
• PROCESS: “The (Sputnik V) vaccine can arrive and -as has happened in many Latin American countries that have made purchases- sometimes it took two, three or four days before authorization was granted. Only then we can proceed with its use”, said Jose Luis Alomía, a Mexican health official.
• NUMBERS: As of late Monday, Mexico has applied 613,390 vaccines and 28,715 second doses. Additionally, 91,350 vaccines are being held for people to receive the required second dose. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is still the only one being used in Mexico.
