Health Minister Carla Vizotti announced today that Argentina will begin using vaccines from AstraZeneca and Moderna Laboratories as a second dose to complete the vaccination against COVID-19 of those receiving Sputnik V.
“The preliminary results of an interim analysis regarding safety and immunity were satisfactory and encouraging,” the minister stressed.
Sputnik V was the first COVID-19 vaccine to arrive in Argentina in December 2020. Eight months later, fears about a second dose are among the rarest. delta version, highly contagious.
Considering the potential risk, the government has set a target to reach at least 60% of the population above 50 years of age by the end of August with a full immunization programme. To comply with this, 2.3 million doses are needed, the minister said.
As of this Wednesday, 25.5 million people (56.6% of the population) had received at least the first dose, of which 7.5 million (16.6%) followed with a complete regimen.
Argentine private laboratory Richmond has promised to supply about 3 million doses of Sputnik V before the end of the month, the first of its samples to have passed quality control.
Argentina has recorded nearly five million infections and more than 106,700 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
