Pvt sector comes forth to assist govt in Covid-19 vaccine drive

The private sector has come forth, committing to support and augment the exercise for Covid 19 vaccine distribution and administration.

A statement by industry body Ficci said that the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC) had met industry representatives in November last year to assess private sector capabilities and capacities for the procurement, distribution, and inoculation of the much awaited vaccine.

FICCI has already submitted a detailed plan outlining what support private sector, including healthcare, can provide.

Alok Roy, Chair, FICCI Health Services Committee and Chairman, Medica Group of Hospitals said, “Given that we are on the verge of launching the largest ever and a complex vaccination program, effective partnerships and seamless collaborations will be pivotal for its success. We hope that the government has taken note of the intent and commitment from private sector players for accelerating the process of targeted vaccination across the country.”

A joint strategy paper developed by FICCI and EY — ‘Protecting India – Public Private Partnership for vaccinating against COVID-19’ in consultation with various stakeholders from healthcare, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, logistics, cold chain and allied sectors, noted that India would need 1.3-1.4 lakh vaccination centres, 1.0 lakh healthcare professionals (as inoculators) and 2.0 lakh support staff or volunteers for the government's mass-inoculation programme.

Private healthcare sector, responsible for almost 70 per cent of healthcare delivery in the country, can adequately supplement the physical and human infrastructure supply in key capacity constrained regions, specifically in urban and semi-urban areas, the study showed.

Meanwhile, the government is set to start its vaccine drive from next week.

As many as 3 crore healthcare and frontline workers such as policemen will be inoculated in the first phase. The Union government has already uploaded data related to these recipients on the CO-WIN IT platform which will be used for the immunization programme.

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