With two Covid vaccines currently waiting for emergency approval from the Food and Drug Administration, Palau is tentatively scheduled to receive doses of a vaccine from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by January 2021.
Operation Warp Speed, a public-private partnership between the U.S government and numerous vaccine manufacturers, promises availability of vaccines not only to U.S states and territories, but also to the Freely Associated States such as Palau.
Currently, two vaccines, BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, have applied for emergency use. Both have demonstrated around 95% effectiveness in clinical trials, and the United Kingdom has already approved the use of the Pfizer vaccine.
The MOH says even if the vaccines are approved, Palau will likely not receive any in December due to certain “logistical barriers,” such as the required ultra-cold storage. However, should the vaccines be approved, it is likely that Palau will receive in January doses of Moderna and second-generation Pfizer vaccines which require storage in cold but more manageable temperatures.
Both vaccines require two doses taken 28 days apart. To successfully vaccinate 15,000 people or 80% of Palau’s population, the MOH will need 30,000 doses of the vaccine.
The MOH and the CDC are collaborating to develop a distribution plan for Palau.
The first group that will receive the first shipment of the vaccine includes healthcare personnel, other essential workers, adults with high-risk medical conditions, and people over 65 years old.
The general population will receive doses from subsequent shipments.
But the MOH stressed that none of the shipping dates are definite, and coordination with the U.S. remains ongoing.
The MOH also emphasized that the vaccination against Covid, which is not mandatory, will still require community members to thoroughly wash their hands, maintain social distancing and wear face masks.
