Mexico, Argentina to Produce Potential AstraZeneca Coronavirus Vaccine
August 13 2020 - 12:31PM
Dow Jones News
By Anthony Harrup
MEXICO CITY -- Mexico and Argentina have reached agreement with
U.K. pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca PLC to produce for Latin
America the Covid-19 vaccine that it is developing with Oxford
University.
Clinical trials under way are expected to be completed in
November or December, and production could begin in early 2021 if
they are successful.
Laboratories in Argentina and Mexico will make the vaccine, and
it will be distributed across Latin America and the Caribbean.
Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim's foundation will contribute to the
cost of starting production.
"The purpose isn't to profit but to guarantee that Latin America
has access to this vaccine," Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo
Ebrard said Thursday at a news conference.
Argentine President Alberto Fernández said the agreement would
ensure that Argentina has early access to the eventual vaccine at a
reasonable price, starting in the first half of 2021.
The final formulation and packaging will be done in Mexico, and
the vaccine will be exported to countries in the region whose
governments request it. Latin America's largest and most populous
country, Brazil, has a separate agreement with AstraZeneca and is
among countries participating in the clinical trials.
Initially it is expected that the laboratories would produce
between 150 million and 250 milllion doses, but that could increase
to more than 400 million, said Sylvia Varela, chief executive for
AstraZeneca in Mexico.
Ms. Varela said that the cost of making and supplying the
vaccine appears to be lower in Latin America than in other regions,
such as Europe, and that the price per dose isn't expected to be
above $4. The Mexican government has said it plans to make the
vaccine available free of charge for Mexicans.
Write to Anthony Harrup at anthony.harrup@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 13, 2020 12:16 ET (16:16 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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