Almost 865,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been delivered to Moldova so far. A donation of vaccines made through the COVAX platform is to be shipped to Moldova this month. The authorities are negotiating the purchase of a lot of 700,000 doses of vaccine with  Pfizer. The third immunization stage that covers the general population will be launched when there is a sufficient number of vaccines. When the categories embraced by the first and second stages are immunized, the vaccination of the general population can be started, IPN reports.

“When the persons covered by the first stage – the health workers that number about 70,000 - are vaccinated and the almost 600,000 persons covered by the second stage are also immunized, we can slowly move to the third stage. The third stage can be launched not only at the national level, but also at the local level, when the first two stages are covered,” Ninel Revenco, national COVID-19 vaccination campaign coordinator, stated in a news conference.

She called on the eligible population not to hesitate to go to the health centers to get a vaccine. All the vaccines are efficient and the people should accept the available vaccine. Information about vaccination is available from the family doctor, who should strictly abide by the national immunization program given that the number of vaccines is limited.

Moldova so far received nearly 865,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, namely AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Sinopharm, Sputnik-V and Sinovac.

Secretary of state at the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Protection Igor Curov said Pfizer responded to the requests made by the authorities and direct negotiations for buying a lot of 700,000 vaccine doses are now held with this producer. The number of doses that will be supplied depends on the producer’s capacity. The quantity and type of vaccines of the donation from COVAX that will come this month are not known. The vaccine doses received recently from China will be distributed to districts in the course of this week.

In another development, Igor Curov said the premature relaxation of the pandemic restrictions is worrisome. There is a risk the number of infections will rise after the Easter holidays.