Coronavirus: in Thailand, vaccine inequality fears grow as private hospitals eye profits
- The kingdom has allowed private hospitals to sell Covid-19 vaccines even as the government embarks on a drive to inoculate 33 million Thais this year
- While the move comes as a relief for tourism and manufacturing firms keen to restart trade, others worry it will worsen vaccine access in the nation of 69 million
The group, which runs eight hospitals in the country, plans to sell vaccinations to private clients at a proposed price of 2,000 baht (US$65) per jab. Boon has already received some advance orders from tourism and manufacturing businesses.
The doses from Chinese manufacturer Sinovac generally cost the most compared with other vaccines, Boon said, due to its inactivated vaccine technology – or the use of live viruses to stimulate antibodies.
As of March 9, some 33,000 people from 13 of the country’s 77 provinces have received the shots, which are free for Thai citizens. Health authorities on Friday said they would delay the roll-out of AstraZeneca shots after several European countries suspended their programmes over blood clot fears. The Johnson & Johnson and Bharat Biotech vaccines are pending approval.
“Having half of the population vaccinated by year-end is not enough,” Boon said. “Some 70-80 per cent of the population need to be vaccinated before then to create herd immunity and confidence [for visitors]. At least 16 million doses of vaccines are in high demand in around 20 tourism provinces of Thailand.”