04.06.2021 – 11:18
In the total anti-Covid vaccines provided by Albania, the weight of Russian Sputnik V vaccines is about 6-7 percent. But with the exception of the AstraZeneca vaccine, the Russian vaccine is the lowest priced vaccine.
The Government reached an agreement in early April with the company “Human Vacine LLC” for the vaccination of Sputnik V. The details of the agreement, as in other agreements reached by the Albanian Government directly or through mediation were classified secret together with the price per dose of the vaccine.
But, a recent decision of the Government reveals that a dose of Russian vaccine was bought from Albania at the price of 10 dollars / dose. The Government decision adds to the category of current expenditures about 500 thousand dollars for the Ministry of Health for the purchase of Russian vaccines.
From the agreement “Human Vacine LLC” Albania provided 50 thousand doses of Sputnik V, or 10 dollars per dose, while the Albanian side has paid for their transport in the amount of 40 thousand euros.
The price of the Russian vaccine is the lowest with the exception of the AstraZeneca vaccine. A dose of Pfizer is bought for at least $ 12 as well as a dose of Sinovac.
Sputnik V is the first anti-Covid vaccine authorized by a country, but although it has applied for authorization from the European Medicines Agency since January, the Sputnik V vaccine is still not approved by the European Union. EU health authorities have recently begun examining Russia’s request. From European countries, Serbia, Slovakia, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Northern Macedonia have currently received the “Sputnik V” dose.
In April, the government announced that it had secured contracts for over 2.5 million doses of anti-COVID vaccines. Considering that two injections are needed for one vaccination, the amount of doses can cover about 1,250,000 people, or 45 percent of the population living in Albania.
Due to the categorization of contracts as “trade secret” by almost all companies, the exact amount spent by Albania so far to provide the anti-Covid vaccine remains unclear, but it is estimated to have gone to about 20 million euros. , including payments made under the Covax mechanism.