FILE PHOTO: A vial labelled with the AstraZeneca coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine is seen in this illustration picture taken March 19, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

 

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysian health authorities said on Friday conditional approval had been granted for AstraZeneca's <AZN.L> COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by Siam Bioscience Co in Thailand.

 

Health Ministry director-general, Noor Hisham Abdullah, said in a statement the vaccine supply received from Thailand is expected to speed up implementation of Malaysia's national vaccination programme.

 

The government had previously put the AstraZeneca vaccine in a parallel optional programme after reports of possible links to very rare blood clots.

 

But the vaccine was brought back into the national immunisation programme last week after hundreds of thousands of people scrambled to get the shot.

 

Malaysia has purchased 12.8 million doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine, half through the COVAX facility and the remainder directly from the drugmaker.

 

The first shipment of 610,000 doses from Thailand is scheduled for this month, followed by 410,000 doses in July and 1.2 million doses between August and September, the government had said previously.

 

(Reporting by Joseph Sipalan; Editing by Ed Davies)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-06-04

 

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Oh No! I wonder how many doses this will mean missing from the local market - Maybe a little sarcasm thrown in

Phillippines and Malaysia get Astra Zeneca but their own people they don't care for....Strange country Thailand... For own people no sufficient vaccines but enough to send abroad...Money for the richest here. Shameless

what a disgrace. Can produce enough vaccine to profiteer from by selling to Malaysia BEFORE vaccinating their own citizens/population.

8 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

Phillippines and Malaysia get Astra Zeneca but their own people they don't care for....Strange country Thailand... For own people no sufficient vaccines but enough to send abroad...Money for the richest here. Shameless

Yes.

It's not reported in Thailand news though.  The Philippine news site reported delays of the Thai manufactured Astrazeneca vaccines they were getting this month yesterday.

8 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

Phillippines and Malaysia get Astra Zeneca but their own people they don't care for....Strange country Thailand... For own people no sufficient vaccines but enough to send abroad...Money for the richest here. Shameless

I believe it is part of their licensing agreement with AstraZeneca.  They have to ship a certain percentage abroad.  The Serum Institute in India has a similar agreement which is why AstraZeneca sent them legal notice for not fulfilling their obligations not too long ago.   I'm not sure how Serum got out of that but shortly after the CEO went to the UK and promised to inject 300 million Euro and set up some facilities there.  So it's probably related.

Even the Malaysian's move quicker that  the Thai Government