RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Brazil's biomedical
institute Fiocruz has begun talks with AstraZeneca Plc
over alternative COVID-19 vaccine sources in case of possible
issues surrounding the local production of the shot, a director
told Reuters on Friday.
Maurício Zuma, who heads the Fiocruz unit that produces
vaccines, said it was still aiming to produce 110 million doses
in the second half of the year, but that the complexity of the
production and regulatory process in Brazil could stifle those
plans.
As a result, he said it was exploring alternatives such as
importing more active ingredients or ready doses.
The AstraZeneca shot was supposed to be the central pillar
of Brazil's vaccination campaign, starting with imports and
later moving to domestic production, but its rollout has been
hit by snags.
"To produce the vaccine here is a whole process," he said.
"We think we can have vaccines ready by the end of the third
quarter, but whether we manage to deliver them will depend on
regulatory questions."
Brazil's health regulator, Anvisa, has come under increasing
criticism for being slow and for making onerous demands on
vaccine producers.
"We know that we are going to have mishaps in a process that
would usually take years,” Zuma added.
AstraZeneca has agreed to transfer the technology for the
active ingredient in its COVID-19 vaccine to Fiocruz to allow
for complete local production. But the agreement is yet to be
signed due to the complexity of the deal, Zuma said.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier in Rio de Janeiro
Writing by Stephen Eisenhammer
Editing by Matthew Lewis)
Astrazeneca (AZN)