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Higher payment limit for vaccines sought

The Department of Budget and Management seeks to increase the 15-percent limit on advance payments on the contract price to procure coronavirus vaccines, saying this would ensure the effective implementation of the government’s vaccination plan.

Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado. (Photo by Enrique Agcaoili)

In a statement on Friday, Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado admitted that the government was having a hard time negotiating with pharmaceutical companies because of limitations under existing laws.

“Currently, you can only pay or make [an] advance payment [of] up to 15 percent [of the amount. But] what the pharmaceutical [firms] want is for you to pay already… for you to advance the payment before the delivery [of the vaccines],” he said in Taglish.

The 15-percent limit was set in Memorandum Order 172, series of 2005. It is only applicable in exceptional cases, such as the procurement of goods during a state of calamity.

Avisado also asked Filipinos to be more patient with and understanding about the government’s vaccine procurement process, as specific details on its negotiations with vaccine makers, such as the price and how the vaccines would be delivered, cannot be disclosed due to confidentiality agreements.

But he assured them that all transactions by the government were legitimate and honest. He said the government was also committed to ensure that the vaccines would be procured, transported and administered safely despite the challenges.

“Let’s give our government a chance to gather the vaccines. This has not happened yet, but there are already criticisms. There are ways for us to see if there are really flaws,” the Budget chief said.

According to him, the P82.5-billion budget to procure the vaccines has been allocated and is ready for release.

The statement comes days after President Rodrigo Duterte said the government would immediately distribute the vaccines that were expected to arrive next week while denying allegations of corruption in their procurement.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told CNN Philippines on Tuesday that 117,000 doses of the vaccine developed by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer might arrive on February 13. She said this was the indicative date agreed upon by the government and the World Health Organization’s Covax Facility.

“I am not confident yet that it’s really February 13 because of the uncertainties in the supplies that we have,” the official said. “What I’m confident [about] is that the commitment by the second or third week of February would push through.”

The doses could be rolled out as early as February 15 or 16 if they do arrive on the said date, according to Vergeire.

In his weekly public address on Monday night, Duterte admitted that he was hurt by the “sweeping” corruption allegations.

“We borrowed funds from the DBP (Development Bank of the Philippines) and the World Bank. We don’t have money. Now when it comes to the payment, when everything is done, the manufacturers like Pfizer will not collect the payment from us. They will get the money from the World Bank and DBP. So, there is no corruption here because we are not holding billions of pesos,” the President explained in Filipino.

WITH REPORTS FROM JOHN ERIC MENDOZA AND CATHERINE S. VALENTE


Source: ManilaTimes
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