Ebrard: Covid-19 vaccine clinical trials will be carried out in Mexico 1:42
(CNN Spanish) - The government of Mexico announced that it signed memoranda of understanding with two Chinese companies and one American to develop phase 3 of their clinical protocols on a possible vaccine against covid-19 in the country, in order to guarantee access to it.
Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said this Tuesday during the morning conference of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador that the companies with which they signed the agreements are Janssen Pharmaceuticals, from the United States, Cansino Biologics and Walvax Biotechnology, from China.
Ebrard said that he has also worked with 15 different companies to reach other understanding agreements in health matters, and that they are willing to work with other governments and multilateral organizations.
On July 30, the Ministry of Foreign Relations (SRE) announced that Mexico would join the research protocol for phase 3 of the covid-19 vaccine developed by the French pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Pasteur.
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This Tuesday, the government of Russia announced that it registered a first vaccine against covid-19 - whose safety has not been verified externally -, called Sputnik V and whose website indicates that Mexico is part of a score of countries that they would have expressed interest in it.
The Mexican authorities did not refer to this in this Tuesday's conference, nor have they issued any statement to confirm or clarify this statement. CNN has sought more information on the matter, but did not get an immediate response.
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López Obrador trusted that Mexico will be treated in a special way to have access to the vaccine for covid-19, after he raised with the international community to guarantee access to it for all countries, without hoarding.
“Mexico has a special consideration because we were the first to propose that it be socialized, that the vaccine be made available to all countries of all peoples, that drugs should not be hoarded that vaccines should not be hoarded. There is a UN resolution proposed by Mexico in this regard. So we think that we are going to be cared for in a special way, "said the president in his conference this Tuesday.
López Obrador affirmed that Mexico has a reserve of up to 100,000 million pesos (more than 4,400 million dollars) to buy the doses.
Mexico: 50,000 deaths and experts foresee complex crisis 3:44“In the event that we have to buy vaccines (for covid-19), there is a budget. We are already estimating the cost of doses ”, he indicated.
“If the doses cost a lot, we have a reserve of up to 100,000 million pesos; if it is a moderate cost, up to 50,000 (million pesos), and if it is a low cost, up to 25,000 million (pesos), because we have healthy public finances, and the most important thing is the health of the people, "he added.
The Mexican president announced that on September 6 they will send their Expenditure Budget project for 2021 to the Chamber of Deputies for analysis, discussion and approval, which must be ready by November 15 of this year at the latest.
Mexico has confirmed 485,000 cases of covid-19, making it the sixth most affected country, according to data from the Johns Hopkins University count. By number of people killed due to the new coronavirus, it is the third most affected, with 53,003 deaths.
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