Explained: Who gets Covid-19 vaccine jabs in first two phases, what's the price
Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Tuesday said the Covid-19 vaccine may cost in the range of ₹200 to 295 in India.
India is all set to begin the “world’s biggest” vaccination drive against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) from January 16. The country aims to achieve vaccination for 30 crore people in the next few months, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said during a meeting with the chief ministers of all states on Monday.
The government has sent a purchase order of 11 million doses of the Astrazeneca-Oxford vaccine to drug manufacturer Serum Institute of India. The Pune-based pharmaceutical firm has already begun the shipment of the first lot Covishield doses with nine flights ferrying as many as 5.6 million doses to 13 cities on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the first batch of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin is ready to be dispatched from Hyderabad this evening. The government said it is procuring 5.5 million doses of Covaxin, which are expected to be received by January 14, according to news agency PTI.
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Who gets the vaccine first?
In the first phase of the immunisation drive, nearly 30 million health workers, from both government and private sector, and frontline workers will be vaccinated. These include cleaners, police and paramilitary, home guards, disaster management volunteers and other jawans in civil defence, and revenue officials associated with containment and surveillance.
Who will receive the vaccine in second phase?
In the second stage, those above 50 years of age, and those below 50 years of age with comorbidities or with high risk of infection, will be vaccinated. The Prime Minister confirmed the details in his virtual meeting with chief ministers on Monday.
How much will the vaccine cost?
Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Tuesday said the Covid-19 vaccine may cost in the range of ₹200 to 295 in India.
The first 100 million doses of the Oxford vaccine will be sold to the government at ₹200 per dose and the rate will later be increased to ₹1000 per dose, according to SII chief executive officer Adar Poonawalla.
"For 38.5 lakh doses of Covaxin the price is ₹295 each, excluding taxes. Bharat Biotech is providing 16.5 lakh doses for free which ultimately brings the cost of Covaxin down to ₹206 per dose," Bhushan said.
Who bears the cost of vaccines?
Modi has announced that the Centre will bear the cost of vaccinating 30 million people in the first stage and not the state government.
