Hospitals postpone Covid jabs amid delays in domestic AstraZeneca production

[connda]

7 hours ago, smedly said:

surely AstraZeneca are assisting in setting up this production facility 

 

my guess is the delay is all about accounting and AZ are not playing ball - they are not Chinese

AZ and other manufacturers stated that vaccines would be provided "at cost" to save humanity from the plague in this public health disaster of pandemic proportions.  My guess is that someone doesn't doesn't really care about this first round of primary vaccines if profits aren't immediately forthcoming.
<cue sounds of dragging feet>

[mtls2005]

4 minutes ago, placeholder said:

All the news reports I've seen re contract say that Siam Bioscience has a contract to produce vaccines for Astra Zeneca to distribute in SE Asia.

 

Yes, but...go back and look at the "news reports". Very little detail gvien by the principals (SB, AZ), with most gibberish spouted by government officials, who often contradict each other.

 

Thanatorn was right to question the transparency of this "arrangement", and the regime's response to his criticism were threatened "legal" actions.  The regime's response alone was enough to indicate something was rotten.

[connda]

15 minutes ago, connda said:

AZ and other manufacturers stated that vaccines would be provided "at cost" to save humanity from the plague in this public health disaster of pandemic proportions.  My guess is that someone doesn't doesn't really care about this first round of primary vaccines if profits aren't immediately forthcoming.
<cue sounds of dragging feet>

Which in turn puts this Anutin quote from February in perspective:

"We have signed a contract with AstraZeneca for at least 61 million doses, not with Siam Bioscience. If Siam Bioscience's plant can't produce the vaccine, it means nothing to us. This is because the purchase agreement clearly stated that AstraZeneca will provide the vaccine, not Siam Bioscience,"

Can't or won't?  Talk about a predictive assertion.  ????

And the fact is, Thailand's vaccine response is totally dependent on SB producing AZ vaccines in massive quantities.  They burnt their bridges by roadblocking the private hospital importation of other more effective Western vaccines.  When profits trump public health, this is what the resultant mess looks like.
I expect to see much ministerial squirming and mealy-mouthed excuses over the upcoming months.  Everyone but those responsible will be blamed.

 

Edited May 25, 2021 by connda

[chilli42]

7 hours ago, smedly said:

surely AstraZeneca are assisting in setting up this production facility 

 

my guess is the delay is all about accounting and AZ are not playing ball - they are not Chinese

AZ technical teams from Europe are surely supporting this effort.  My guess is that there are aging/stability problems with Thai made plant batches.  Lived through this kind of thing in my prior life.  Also, there is a tendency for tech people to be optimistic when they are pressured for  fast results.

[mtls2005]

 

"We have signed a contract with AstraZeneca for at least 61 million doses, not with Siam Bioscience. If Siam Bioscience's plant can't produce the vaccine, it means nothing to us. This is because the purchase agreement clearly stated that AstraZeneca will provide the vaccine, not Siam Bioscience,"

 

 

 

So why postpone second doses?

 

AZ will magicaly deliver doses which SB failed to manufacure. Tell me again how that'll work out for you.

 

 

Does he even think through what he is saying?

 

 

[Mavideol]

11 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

Does he even think through what he is saying?

if he did it would mean he has some type of brain (which is not the case) and he wouldn't be saying it  555

[connda]

6 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

and all the time they are telling... vaccines will be delivered in time... with we assure you there will be no delays.... All words to keep the Thai people under control. I am wondering when they have enough of this incompetent Government

Muzzling the commoners, destroying their means of livelihood, and outlawing all activities that allow the public to enjoy life is a means to an end in itself. 
If vaccines aren't on the event-horizon then showing the commoners their place seems to be the current rung on the ladder or New Normal.  Apply maximum pressure on the necks of the servile classes so that they literally fall over themselves lining up to get shots that will lead to a semblance of their former normality.

[natway09]

The most annoying part of all this for me is that this "news" came out through the back door.

Why does the head honcho of SiamBioScience not have a daily news release like anybody else & tell us about the progress & difficulties they are facing in procuring raw materials ?

Why all the cloak & dagger stuff ?

[WaveHunter]

8 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Predictable. That means its Sinovac for us ????

I'm not going to opt for SInoVac based on the fact that countries within the EU (and probably many other countries around the world) will not allow foreigners that were vaccinated with SInoVac to enter their countries.

 

There is  growing science-based evidence that SInoVac has much lower efficacy and potency than Western vaccines, and the EU's stance on SInoVac supports this notion.

 

I think we'll all be surprised how quickly private hospitals make Western vaccines available to those willing to pay, and considering that Thailand is one of the safest countries for unvaccinated people, I'm willing to wait and just practice safe social distancing until then.

 

The Private Hospital Association of Thailand is currently reviewing orders from its 200 member hospitals and will procure the vaccines through the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO), government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul was quoted as saying on Sunday. The group of hospitals  is expected to order 5 million doses of Moderna vaccines, she said.

 

It only makes sense that a private, profit-making enterprise (which is what a private hospital really is) is going to be much more efficient at procurement and distribution, so I think this is all going to happen quicker than most of us realize right now.

 

The price of vaccination through a private hospital (estimated to be 3,000 THB at the highest) would be quite affordable for most foreigners IMO, especially those who want to be able to freely travel internationally again.

Edited May 25, 2021 by WaveHunter

[malibukid]

Thailands mistake was that it did not negotiate early for a vaccine and decided to go it alone.

Edited May 25, 2021 by malibukid

[unblocktheplanet]

8 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

fresh air available from any government minister in huge abundance ????

Not really very fresh coming out the back end...

[malibukid]

3 hours ago, sqwakvfr said:

"But maybe I should just go back to the US and get this done properly.  I just don't know what the truth is."

 

100% agree with you on this one.  I have started planning  my Los Angeles Vaccination trip.  It looks like plenty of options.  Some of the local pharmacies in my old neighborhood have all three(Pfizer, Moderna, or J&J).  The only thing  I am concerned about is the coming back to LOS part(did quarantine once this year and would prefer not to do it again).  

Thailand should recognize fully vaccinated expats and not require us to quarantine.  i will fly back after my retirement extension is done.  i don't really care for the States any longer and will return asap.

[sambum]

But we've got plenty of Chinese Coronovac vaccine!

 

Surprised? Not really!

 

"Representatives of Siam Bioscience were not available for comment."

 

Surprised? Not really!

[AMFWolfie]

9 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

I get the feeling this line of falling behind spiel on TV will run and run and run and run.....

It already has!!! They first talked about production in February!!

[ThailandRyan]

33 minutes ago, natway09 said:

The most annoying part of all this for me is that this "news" came out through the back door.

Why does the head honcho of SiamBioScience not have a daily news release like anybody else & tell us about the progress & difficulties they are facing in procuring raw materials ?

Why all the cloak & dagger stuff ?

That is a very good question, but I think all of the cloak and dagger is run by the government as a mouthpiece, so no fake news is given....lol.

[Harry Fingerling]

9 hours ago, webfact said:

Some hospitals were being forced to postpone second rounds of Covid-19 inoculations as Siam Bioscience was falling behind in its scheduled production

Well who’d have thought.

[metisdead]

A post using a trolling image has been removed.

 

A post with a link to Bangkok Post has been removed as well as the related replies. 

[placeholder]

27 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

I'm not going to opt for SInoVac based on the fact that countries within the EU (and probably many other countries around the world) will not allow foreigners that were vaccinated with SInoVac to enter their countries.

 

There is  growing science-based evidence that SInoVac has much lower efficacy and potency than Western vaccines, and the EU's stance on SInoVac supports this notion.

 

I think we'll all be surprised how quickly private hospitals make Western vaccines available to those willing to pay, and considering that Thailand is one of the safest countries for unvaccinated people, I'm willing to wait and just practice safe social distancing until then.

 

The Private Hospital Association of Thailand is currently reviewing orders from its 200 member hospitals and will procure the vaccines through the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO), government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul was quoted as saying on Sunday. The group of hospitals  is expected to order 5 million doses of Moderna vaccines, she said.

 

It only makes sense that a private, profit-making enterprise (which is what a private hospital really is) is going to be much more efficient at procurement and distribution, so I think this is all going to happen quicker than most of us realize right now.

 

The price of vaccination through a private hospital (estimated to be 3,000 THB at the highest) would be quite affordable for most foreigners IMO, especially those who want to be able to freely travel internationally again.

The EU is correct not to be satisfied with Coronavac since it's less effective against infection. That's a matter for public health. But individuals are far better off getting vaccinated with Coronavac if it's a choice between Coronavac or nothing. It still provided potent protection against the development of serious symptoms and death. One can always get vaccinated now with Coronavac and then later with another vaccine of one's choice.

[smedly]

1 hour ago, connda said:

AZ and other manufacturers stated that vaccines would be provided "at cost" to save humanity from the plague in this public health disaster of pandemic proportions.  My guess is that someone doesn't doesn't really care about this first round of primary vaccines if profits aren't immediately forthcoming.
<cue sounds of dragging feet>

exactly my point, certain people are trying to exploit the situation to enrich themselves and AZ are having none of it, why would AZ allow 3rd parties to profit from their product when they have stated they will ship at cost from their own facilities

[placnx]

4 hours ago, Jeffr2 said:

It's all over the news, but mostly in Thai.  They're working in conjunction with AZ.  With them helping to certify everything is up to snuff.

 

I kinda felt this was coming.  So we gave up and are headed back in a few weeks for the Pfizer jab.  It's good with the Indian variant, which will become prominent here shortly.  AZ's not so good with this variant.

 

Crazy times!!!!

Let's hope that you continue to post on TVF. Another hope is that AZ/Oxford put out an update of their vaccine to respond to the Indian variant, so that people here are protected if they can get the AZ vaccine.

[placnx]

3 hours ago, mtls2005 said:

This AstraZeneca-Siam Bioscience pseudo-"arrangement" is starting to smell a lot like the "Hopewell" project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe Gordon Wu can build up a vaccine factory here.

[WaveHunter]

37 minutes ago, placeholder said:

The EU is correct not to be satisfied with Coronavac since it's less effective against infection. That's a matter for public health. But individuals are far better off getting vaccinated with Coronavac if it's a choice between Coronavac or nothing. It still provided potent protection against the development of serious symptoms and death. One can always get vaccinated now with Coronavac and then later with another vaccine of one's choice.

You actually make a good point.  I was wondering if that was possible; I mean, getting SinoVac now but then getting a second vaccination with a Western version as soon as it is available through private hospitals.  Do you know if you can actually be vaccinated twice (i.e.: is it medically safe)?

[Lingba]

Amazing Thailand!

[placnx]

3 hours ago, Cake Monster said:

And lets not forget that from any Vaccines that are produced by SB, there will be a significant amount under some kind of a contractual agreement, that are due to be Exported.

A report last week stated that the Export Volume could be as high as 87 % of production by SB.

Siam Bioscience is the manufacturer of AZ Vaccines for the whole of S E Asia, and not just for Thailand,s use only.

Maybe this is the holdup. maybe Thailand wants more than its share due to the massive shortage that has arisen because of incompetence.

India has provided the precedent. The Indian government has blocked Serum Institute from exporting contracted orders until the end of the year (at least).

[CharlieH]

Posts making very unwise links/references have been removed.

[bstafford214]

1 hour ago, natway09 said:

The most annoying part of all this for me is that this "news" came out through the back door.

Why does the head honcho of SiamBioScience not have a daily news release like anybody else & tell us about the progress & difficulties they are facing in procuring raw materials ?

Why all the cloak & dagger stuff ?

Think about it carefully, we are in LOS. Only smiles are reported not negative energy.

[placnx]

1 hour ago, WaveHunter said:

I'm not going to opt for SInoVac based on the fact that countries within the EU (and probably many other countries around the world) will not allow foreigners that were vaccinated with SInoVac to enter their countries.

 

There is  growing science-based evidence that SInoVac has much lower efficacy and potency than Western vaccines, and the EU's stance on SInoVac supports this notion.

 

I think we'll all be surprised how quickly private hospitals make Western vaccines available to those willing to pay, and considering that Thailand is one of the safest countries for unvaccinated people, I'm willing to wait and just practice safe social distancing until then.

 

The Private Hospital Association of Thailand is currently reviewing orders from its 200 member hospitals and will procure the vaccines through the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO), government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul was quoted as saying on Sunday. The group of hospitals  is expected to order 5 million doses of Moderna vaccines, she said.

 

It only makes sense that a private, profit-making enterprise (which is what a private hospital really is) is going to be much more efficient at procurement and distribution, so I think this is all going to happen quicker than most of us realize right now.

 

The price of vaccination through a private hospital (estimated to be 3,000 THB at the highest) would be quite affordable for most foreigners IMO, especially those who want to be able to freely travel internationally again.

First of all, at 3000-4500 there will be many Thais also wanting Pfizer or Moderna. When could the Pharmaceutical Organization get a sufficient supply? In order to limit the demand, would those signed up for the public jab be blocked from the private hospital route?

[placeholder]

20 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

You actually make a good point.  I was wondering if that was possible; I mean, getting SinoVac now but then getting a second vaccination with a Western version as soon as it is available through private hospitals.  Do you know if you can actually be vaccinated twice (i.e.: is it medically safe)?

There are ongoing studies I believe. I don't know what the data shows so far.

[placnx]

58 minutes ago, placeholder said:

The EU is correct not to be satisfied with Coronavac since it's less effective against infection. That's a matter for public health. But individuals are far better off getting vaccinated with Coronavac if it's a choice between Coronavac or nothing. It still provided potent protection against the development of serious symptoms and death. One can always get vaccinated now with Coronavac and then later with another vaccine of one's choice.

If the public health situation takes a significant turn for the worse, perhaps foreign governments will decide to help their expats. Getting "another vaccine" would have to be via a private hospital, but will they have enough to go around and when would that be?

[placeholder]

Just now, placnx said:

If the public health situation takes a significant turn for the worse, perhaps foreign governments will decide to help their expats. Getting "another vaccine" would have to be via a private hospital, but will they have enough to go around and when would that be?

As I understand it, the USA, at least, is projected shortly to have a glult.