DAYS AFTER the Government included Bharat Biotech’s intranasal vaccine Incovacc as a booster option in its Covid immunisation programme, the company announced that doses will be available from the fourth week of January, 2023. The doses will be priced at Rs 800 each in the private market and Rs 325 for large government orders, according to a company statement.
Meanwhile, hospitals across the country carried out mock drills Tuesday to check their preparedness in Covid management.
Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who witnessed the drill at Safdarjung hospital in Delhi, said “clinical readiness at hospitals is crucial”. “The government as well as private hospitals are undertaking mock drills today. State Health Ministers are reviewing the drills in their respective states,” he said.
Incovacc, which has been added to the vaccine management portal CoWIN, will be available as a mix-and-match, or heterologous, booster dose. People who have received the first two doses of Covaxin or Covishield will be eligible to get Incovacc.
“We have achieved the goals we set for ourselves. We have developed two Covid vaccines from two different platforms with two different delivery systems. The vectored intranasal delivery platform gives us the capability for rapid product development, scale-up, easy and painless immunization during public health emergencies and pandemics,” Bharat Biotech’s Krishna Ella said in a statement.
India has continued to report a decline in Covid cases, with 157 new cases reported over the last 24 hours. Over 220 crore vaccine doses have been administered under the immunisation programme, which started in January 2021. Over 90 per cent of the population have received the first and second doses. However, only about 27 per cent have received the precaution dose so far, with the coverage being slightly higher at about 40 per cent for those above the age of 60 years.
