Govt paid premium for some Sinovac vaccines due to Pharmaniaga delay - PAC
Putrajaya paid a premium price for some of Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccines amid pressing need due to Pharmaniaga’s delay in delivering vaccines between April and May this year, said the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
This was one of the PAC's findings in their report, published today, on Covid-19 vaccine procurement and its usage for Malaysian citizens, under the Science, Technology, and Innovation Ministry, Health Ministry, and Finance Ministry.
“The PAC is satisfied that the procurement prices for the vaccines from various portfolios paid for by the government were reasonable.
“However, the PAC found that...
Putrajaya paid a premium price for some of Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccines amid pressing need due to Pharmaniaga’s delay in delivering vaccines between April and May this year, said the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
This was one of the PAC's findings in their report, published today, on Covid-19 vaccine procurement and its usage for Malaysian citizens, under the Science, Technology, and Innovation Ministry, Health Ministry, and Finance Ministry.
“The PAC is satisfied that the procurement prices for the vaccines from various portfolios paid for by the government were reasonable.
“However, the PAC found that the government had to pay a premium price – an increase between 16.78 to 18.12 percent – for the purchase of some of the finished Sinovac vaccines.
“(Among the reasons for this was) due to Pharmaniaga’s delay in delivering (finished vaccines) in April, May, and June 2021 and also due to the pressing need at the time.
“PAC is of the opinion that the government should stick to the same price as agreed to in the earlier deal,” the committee said in its summary of the report today.
The country was in a dire situation during the first half of this year due to fast-rising Covid-19 cases amid a slowed vaccination rollout due to delayed vaccine deliveries.
The vaccination rate greatly increased after July, following more deliveries of vaccines from the manufacturers.
Pharmaniaga previously inked a local manufacturing deal to purchase "ready-to-fill" bulk product of Sinovac’s vaccine, after which the former was to fill and finish the process of making individual vaccine shots.
