Galvez mum on 17 potential COVID-19 vaccines being evaluated

Vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. has refused to identify the 17 potential COVID-19 vaccines being evaluated by the country's vaccine experts panel.

"As I have said earlier and also said by Usec. Vergeire, we are advised by the companies not to reveal their names because the evaluation is very critical. It will make some sort of judgement in their application," Galvez said in a virtual presser on Wednesday.

Galvez said the pharmaceutical firms, whose potential vaccines against COVID-19 are under review, are from the United States, China, Russia, United Kingdom, Japan, India, Israel and Germany.

Galvez earlier said British-Swedish pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca has offered the cheapest potential vaccine against COVID-19.

At present, only the Chinese vaccine Sinovac has been cleared by the Department of Science and Technology's vaccine experts panel.

However, Sinovac still needs approval from the Ethics Board and the Food and Drug Administration before it can be cleared for clinical trial.

The Philippines already recorded a total of 401,416 COVID-19 cases, with 362,217 recoveries and 7,710 deaths. — RSJ, GMA News