Pakistan is experiencing a “temporary” vaccine shortage, a health representative acknowledged on Wednesday, in the midst of fears among individuals that there might be an extended referral between their first and second doses, making the vaccine process slow and ineffective.

Vaccine shortage is temporary, said Dr. Faisal Sultan

Amidst the ascending concerns of vaccine shortage in major cities of Pakistan, Dr. Faisal Sultan has assured of the smooth administration of vaccines after June 20th 2020.

“This is a temporary shortage and the situation is expected to improve after June 20 with the availability of more vaccine doses” Dr Faisal Sultan, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on National Health Services, Regulations & Coordination, said on Wednesday.

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When will the vaccine return?

There are “more than 2,000 vaccination centres in the country” and the number of visitors varies at each clinic, which can lead to “shortage of vaccines at busy vaccine centres” where the demand is high, Dr Sultan said. The health officials were in communication with the provincial and local authorities to fix the vaccine shortage with swift redistribution.

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Moreover, the government is likewise chipping away at promising the supply of additional dozes, Faisal Sultan said. He added that the circumstance would improve with the appearance of more dosages of vaccines in June. Furthermore, he said that numerous nations are facing comparable situation because of the worldwide lack.

How many vaccine doses have been administered in Pakistan?

Pakistan launched its vaccination drive on February 2. So far, over 11.7 million doses have been administered. The country has so far received 14.5 million doses of Sinopharm (6.7m doses), Sinovac (5.5m), AstraZeneca (1.24m), CanSino (1m), and Pfizer (0.1m).

Covid current cases in Pakistan

Pakistan has reported 1,038 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the number of confirmed cases to 944,065. Another 46 people died in the last 24 hour. The nationwide death toll stands at 21,828, the Ministry of National Health Services said.