PRIVATE hospitals in Thailand can now buy up to a total of 10 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to help create herd immunity faster amid rising numbers of new infections in the country.
Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) spokesman Dr Taweesilp Visanuyothin said the approval will be in addition to government's purchases and it had already received the nod from Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.
He said this was in response to claims that the government was monopolising vaccine imports and preventing private firms from buying and selling vaccines.
The decision was made at a meeting between the prime minister and senior officials of the Public Health Ministry, the Department of Disease Control, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation (GPO), the National Vaccine Institute (NVI), and representatives of private hospitals and the Private Hospital Association (PHA) at Government House.
According to a Bangkok Post report, the Thai government has placed orders for 70 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines, enough for 35 million people.
However, to achieve herd immunity, least 40 million people must be vaccinated.
Dr Taweesilp said representatives of private hospitals confirmed they were able to buy the 10 million doses needed for the other 5 million people and the prime minister agreed to let private hospitals meet the demand.
A committee will also be formed to work with the GPO, the FDA, the NVI and the PHA, and come up with details of the procurement plan and submit it to the prime minister within one month.
Private procurement would target vaccines from producers other than the manufacturers the government had already registered, for the sake of diversification and risk distribution, he said.
The government has also agreed to private hospitals' requests for larger allocations of existing vaccines from the Public Health Ministry, due to rising numbers of Covid-19 patients receiving treatment at private hospitals.
Dr Taweesilp said the premier had also instructed the Public Health Ministry to expedite the vaccination of people following the new infection cluster linked to pubs and bars in the Thong Lor area in Bangkok.
Currently, health officials are vaccinating about 10,000 people daily, except in Phuket where about 14,000 people are being inoculated per day.
Meanwhile, Gen Prayut said the planned procurement by private hospitals would be for emergency purposes.
He said some 350,000 doses have already arrived and 1.5 million more will be delivered to Thailand this month.
However, Gen Prayut said it remains to be seen as to whether manufacturers in foreign countries will be willing to sell vaccines to Thailand because there has been an overwhelming global demand for them.
Gen Prayut added that reopening the country to foreign tourists may be delayed if the situation does not improve.
He said the plan did not mean the country would be fully reopened all at once and that it was important to consider whether neighbouring countries would also reopen.
He also stressed the need for economic recovery and distributing vaccines to provinces that are home to top tourist spots.