Brazil's Health ministry expects distribution of COVID-19 vaccine by end of December

The Brazilian health ministry has said that it would start the distribution of 15.2 million dozens of Oxford/ AstraZeneca experimental vaccine against the COVID-19 if trials prove the vaccine is safe. Currently, the vaccine is in phase trials and a total of 5000 Brazilians have volunteered for the testing.

Brazil which has reported 2,484,649 cases till now is expecting a successful vaccine to arrive in the country by this year’s end. According to Secretary of Health Surveillance Arnoldo Correia de Medeiros, the first batch of vaccine is expected to arrive in Brazil in the second week of December. In addition, it expects the next batch to arrive by January next year and another 70 million by March and April.

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Speaking to international media reports, de Medeiros said that that elderly would be the first one to receive a vaccine without specifying where it would come from. A vaccine purchase agreement has yet not been signed between the manufacturers and Brazilian govt. As of now, the Brazilian Health Ministry has said that the negotiations on technical items production, technology transfer are still in discussion. 

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Bolsonaro slammed

This comes as a coalition of health professionals in Brazil denounced President Jair Bolsonaro for his handling of coronavirus outbreak which has claimed over 87,000 lives so far, accusing of committing "crimes against humanity" and "genocide" in a judicial complaint to the International Court of Justice. They accused the Brazilian President of neglect and contempt by promoting large gatherings, medication like hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19 without any scientific proof, and venturing into public without a mask.

Read: Brazilian President Bolsonaro Hopes For Trump's Victory In US Presidential Election 2020

Image credits: AP