Vaccines donated by US go to medical staff and not VIPS

(Jeppe Gustafsson / Shutterstock.com)

At least 500.000 doses of the 1,5 million Pfizer vaccines donated by the United States will be allocated to primary care workers, the Department of Health announced yesterday. Spokesperson Rungrueng Kijphati denies rumors that only 200.000 doses will go to them. He also says that VIPs or military personnel do not receive preferential treatment.

A cardiologist from Chiang Mai University's medical school questioned the allocation of the vaccines. Rungsrit Kanjanavanit claims on Facebook that he learned at a meeting that the government plans to allocate only 200.000 of the 1,5 million doses donated by the United States to frontline medical personnel.

Rungsrit says the government initially promised to provide 700.000 doses to medical staff, but that number was later reduced to 500.000 and has subsequently been reduced to 200.000.

“As a cardiologist with a moderate risk of contracting the virus, I don't need a booster shot yet. I can live with the low immunity from the two Sinovac injections and will wait until there are enough vaccines for everyone. But if the 300.000 missing doses of the Pfizer vaccine ended up going to VIPs and their relatives, then I object.”

At a press conference Sunday, spokesman Rungrueng dismissed the claim as "fake news." He said 500.000 doses of Pfizer are earmarked as booster shots for frontline personnel. They are administered from the beginning of August.

He also denied the rumors about favoring VIPs. “It is not true that part of the Pfizer vaccine is for VIPs. The vaccines are for healthcare workers and high-risk groups. VIPs are not a priority,” said the spokesperson for the ministry.

Source: Bangkok Post