Government concerned about fake vaccines: Zweli Mkhize

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize on Wednesday reminded South Africans that Covid-19 vaccines are not for sale.

This after a recent discovery of fake vaccines circulating on the black market.

“We want our people to be aware that the vaccines are free at the point of administration so that we do not have space for people to be charged in the black market.

“This matter has been taken up quite seriously and the government in those particular countries are working with manufacturers to try to limit the sourcing of these particular black market vaccines. So we hope that we will always be a step ahead of the black market and fake vaccines syndicates,” said Mkhize.

The health minister was responding during an oral question and answer session in the National Assembly.

SAPS has issued a similar warning after a recent bust at a warehouse in Germiston, Gauteng, when international policing authority Interpol seized hundreds of fake Covid-19 vaccines.

Interpol reportedly said about 400 ampoules — equivalent to around 2,400 doses — containing the fake vaccine were found and officers also recovered a large quantity of fake 3M masks.

Three Chinese nationals and a Zambian were arrested.

Mkhize said: “It is a very worrying issue, and in our interministerial committee led by the deputy president [David Mabuza], we have got a team dealing with this matter, which means that the police are on high alert.

“Our procurement process is to ensure that there is a very short line between the purchaser and the producers, so we are buying directly from the manufacturers even though there are many people in between who have offered to sell the vaccines.

“But because we have a direct relationship with the manufacturers, we are able to do so. That is how we are able to limit the number of vaccines that can come through outside the lines that the government has designated.”

It has been agreed that even those in the private sector would access the vaccine through governments’ procurement processes.

Mkhize further explained the matter over whether the Johnson & Johnson vaccines which are being administered were part of the J & phase 3B study. Mkhize said issues of safety and efficacy of the J & vaccines had been studied and finalised.

“What we are doing is what we call an implementation study, which means that whoever is going to get the injection with Johnson & Johnson now will not need to get another vaccine any time in the future.

“This study will also be done with Pfizer. Even though we have done all the efficacy and safety studies, it is just to look at what happens when people have been vaccinated. We will need to take up to 500,000 of those, so that we can have a large number of people that can be observed.

“All that it means is that we will want to know if there are any break out infections arising and if there is anything that we must take into account while we continue to vaccinate people.”

Mkhize said the J & vaccine was going to be fully produced in large numbers when the government started the next phase of the vaccination process.

“It will not be a continuation of the study but we will use lessons that we had learnt from those who were exposed to a high level of infection. We are comfortable that this vaccination is progressing well and that the study is going to benefit us.”

On the government’s goal to vaccinate 65% of the adult population, amounting to about 40 million people, to reach population immunity, Mkhize said the government had secured 43 million doses in total.

“Our agreements are now with Johnson & Johnson as well as with Pfizer. The agreement with J & is for 11 million doses and 20 million doses from Pfizer. In addition there is a commitment to procure 12 million from Covax. The delivery schedule from J & is divided into quarters, not monthly volumes.”

Mkhize explained that until the end of the first quarter [March 31] the government is expecting 500,000 doses from J & as part of the 3B study. Another 600,000 doses are expected from Pfizer, which will be allocated to health-care workers.

He said of the 600,000, about 110,000 would have come from Covax.

“In quarter two, which is to end June, we expect eight million doses, five million from Pfizer, and three million from J &, and these will be used to complete the vaccination of health-care workers as phase two.”

In the third quarter, July to September, the government expects to receive a further 11.6 million doses which will be made up of 7.6 million from Pfizer and four million from J &. These doses will be used to complete phase two and the balance of the phase three group.

In the fourth quarter, October to December, a further 11 million doses, seven million from Pfizer and four million from J &, will conclude the phase three group.

“We have not yet received the final delivery schedule from Covax, in addition we are in the final stages of the closing agreement for the doses that are required which will allow us to roll out the vaccines according to our plans.”

Mkhize said the government was mindful that some of the supplies could be interrupted or delayed by the manufacturing companies.

On the matter of Ivermectin, which is now registered in SA only for veterinary and agricultural use, for the prevention and treatment of Covid-19, Mkhize said the SA health products regulatory authority has provided guidelines on how it should be used, with doctors taking responsibility for the administration of the product, together with the consequences associated with it.

“The research that continues to be done has not completely demonstrated that Ivermectin can be openly used and so we will keep to the advice of Sahpra,” he said.

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