Trying to procure vaccines from manufacturers but it may take few more days: Andhra govt

With Phase III of the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination drive set to start on May 1, the Andhra Pradesh government has said it is trying to procure vaccine from the manufacturers, but "it may take few more days to get the vaccine on hand".

In a release, Andhra Pradesh Health department Principal Secretary l Kumar Singhal said on Wednesday that the state government is consulting with 'all three compes' for the procurement of vaccines.

"The state government is trying to procure vaccine, to inoculate people above 18 years of age, from the compes. However, it may take few more days to get the vaccine on hand. The Centre has declared eligibility for vaccination to people above 18 from May 1. That doesn't mean to vaccinate them from that date. We have been consulting with all three compes. Right now they have orders from the central government, the compes will respond to our queries in few days. Then we will be able to chart out a plan to inoculate vaccine to people above 18," said Singhal.

He said that for the past 15 days, only RT-PCR tests are being conducted in the state, and from Thursday onwards, TrueNat tests will also be conducted.

"A total of 422 hospitals are given permission for conducting covid tests. 5,572 ICU beds available in the state and more than 3,000 beds are occupied. 18,086 beds are with oxygen facility, of which 10,302 beds are occupied by this morning. We ordered the officials to update the information on a real-time basis so that people will get accurate data in their access," he said.

He said government hospitals in the state have no problem regarding the availability of Remdesivir injections and the state has a stock of 28,994 doses.

The Principal Secretary asked the private hospitals to not treat Covid-19 patients "illegally" and should register with district authorities so that they can place an indent for Remdesivir.

"Thus, the medicine usage will go properly. Our aim is to prevent hoarding or black marketing of Remdesivir. So district-level officials are given the responsibility to monitor private hospitals. District-level flying squads are formed for this purpose. The state government has fixed rates for the treatment of coronavirus and supply of Remdesivir. Stern action will be taken on those violating the norms," he added.

The Centre on April 19 had announced a ''liberalised'' policy, making all above 18 years of age eligible to get vaccinated from May 1. It has also allowed state governments and private hospitals to purchase vaccines from manufacturers.

Registration for the new eligible population groups commenced at 4 pm on Wednesday. Potential beneficiaries can either register directly on CoWIN portal (cowin.gov.in) or through the Aarogya Setu app.

( With inputs from ANI )