The US-made Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has been approved by Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) for emergency use, said the agency today (Thursday). It is the fourth vaccine approved by the TFDA for import into the country.
Moderna is likely to be the first commercially available vaccine option in Thailand, as private hospitals are looking to import it through the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO). Vaccines approved only for emergency use can only be purchased from their manufacturers by governments.
It is not immediately known when the Moderna vaccine will be procured and delivered. According to the Private Hospital Association of Thailand, the price for a Moderna vaccine package, which includes two doses and service fees, should be around 3,000 Baht.
Only Sinovac’s CoronaVac and AstraZeneca have been in use in Thailand to date and are only provided by the government. The third to be approved was US-made Johnson & Johnson, on March 25th, but no procurement has been made so far.
According to Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, deliveries of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are expected late this year, and will coincide with the availability of locally produced AstraZeneca inoculations, which means the former may not be needed.
