QCOSTARICA – The fifth batch of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine arrived in Costa Rica Tuesday night, January 19.
The 16,575 doses landed at 9 pm on a DHL Aero Express flight, totaling 104,325 doses since the first batch arrived on December 23.
The vaccines, now in the hands of Caja Costarricense De Seguro Social (CCSS), will be used to continue the vaccination program that began on December 24, and that has been applied to 29,389 people.
More than 100 have received their second this week.
The first batch of 9,750 doses that arrived in the country on Wednesday, December 23, the second of 11,700 doses was on Wednesday, December 30, the third of 33,150 doses arrived on Tuesday, January 5, the fourth of another 33,150 doses on January 12.
Yesterday’s shipment was smaller than the expected 33,000 plus doses, this due to the pharmaceutical announcing last week that the rest of January deliveries would be smaller due to upgrades in its European manufacturing facilities, and would increase shipments starting in February, with an expected delivery of at least 200,000 doses and 300,000 in March.
Costa Rica has purchased 3 million doses from Pfizer, two million dollars via the Covax Facility, one million doses from AstraZeneca. An additional 640,800 are to be purchased from a yet unspecified provided.
On Tuesday, by unanimous vote, the Legislative Assembly approved budget expenditure to ensure vaccines against covid-19.
