The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted emergency use authorization (EUA) to Sputnik V, one of Russia’s COVID-19 vaccines, today, 19 March 2021, as announced by FDA Director General Eric Domingo during the Department of Health (DOH)’s Special Briefing.
Vials labelled "Sputnik V Coronavirus
COVID-19 Vaccine" are seen in this illustration photo taken March 12,
2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration. Photo taken from Channelnewsasia.com |
Authorized for limited use among Filipino individuals
aged 18 and above, the non-replicating viral vector COVID-19 vaccine was
developed by the Gamaleya Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology
through the support of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF). Both Gamaleya
and RDIF were identified by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST),
which chairs the Task Group on Vaccine Evaluation and Selection (TG VES), as
one of its bilateral partners for the possible conduct of vaccine clinical
trials in the Philippines. The DOST-convened
Vaccine Expert Panel (VEP) has reviewed the initial clinical trial data of
Sputnik V, which served as one of the bases for the FDA’s approval of the
vaccine’s EUA application.
As early as August 2020, the DOST-led TG VES has been
in contact with Gamaleya and RDIF, through the assistance of both the
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Embassy of the Russian Federation
in the Philippines, in terms of COVID-19 vaccine development, and more
recently, in Gamaleya’s submission of the required documents to FDA for their
EUA application.
The DOST welcomes this development as the country now
has an additional approved vaccine in its portfolio for the National COVID-19 Vaccination Program.
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