The delivery of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccines against COVID-19 to the Philippines has been pushed back to April 28.
The National Task Force (NTF) against COVID-19 said that logistical reasons caused the delay.
Apart from the 15,000 doses arriving on the 28th, the NTF said some 480,000 more would arrive the following day.
Sputnik V is the first COVID-19 vaccine to be developed in 2020 from Gamaleya Institute.
Sputnik V is taken in two doses and has a 91.6% efficacy rate. Results from a peer-reviewed late-stage trial in The Lancet medical journal showed that it is completely protective against severe forms of COVID-19.
Vaccine Czar Carlito Galvez said that most of the country’s supply of vaccines until June would be from China’s Sinovac at 4.5 million and Russia at 4 million doses.
Galvez said that they are also negotiating for 20 million doses of the Russian-made jab.
The Department of Health however said that not all local government units will have the Sputnik V vaccines due to stringent handling requirements.
