Caretaker Public Health Minister, Hamad Hassan’s Press Office clarified in an issued statement this afternoon, that “the Ministry of Health has given permission for the emergency use of the Russian and Chinese vaccines after reviewing their scientific dossiers, with the aim of purchasing them under a direct contract with the manufacturing or producing company, funded by the general budget or in an indirect way through the private sector.”
As evidence of the above, the Ministry’s statement indicated that a private company imported a quantity of the Sputnik vaccine two days ago within the context of individual initiatives, adding that the Ministry is waiting for a donation of the Chinese vaccine soon while a number of private companies are completing talks to import this vaccine as well.
The statement corrected what was quoted by LBC with regards to the vaccine import, stating that “Minister Hassan explained in his interview this morning with the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation Channel that the Lebanese government will not be able to purchase the two vaccines through a World Bank loan because the World Bank only funds the vaccines approved by the Kovacs platform.”
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