EXCLUSIVE: SA paying huge premium for Covid-19 shots from Serum Institute of India
EU, US and AU will pay far less
SA, which was left scrambling to source Covid-19 vaccines after failing to timeously place orders with manufacturers, is set to pay a massive premium on the shots it has secured directly from the Serum Institute of India (SII), the health department confirmed on Wednesday.
After weeks of growing criticism over the slow pace of its vaccine acquisition plans, the government announced in early January that it had secured 1.5-million doses of the SII’s Covishield shot, which the institute is manufacturing under licence from AstraZeneca. It has now emerged that the government has agreed to pay the SII $5.25 (about R78) a dose, more than twice the price the EU negotiated directly with AstraZeneca in 2020...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.