04 March 2021 20:35

Information of the press service of the State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance

The State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance (Agency) does not agree with the statement regarding the non-inclusion of Azerbaijan on the list of 18 countries which will receive the “Pfizer-BioNTech” vaccine under the COVAX program. The information provided by the WHO states that participants, that initiated their COVID-19 vaccination program as of January 29, will not be included in the first wave rollout of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. This assessment criteria for allocation is not clear enough, and no legal document or official correspondence contained such provisions. Azerbaijan has approved the vaccination strategy and fulfilled all of the technical requirements to receive the vaccines based on the recommendations of the WHO. 

The Republic of Azerbaijan is one of the 50 countries that highly appreciated the initiative of the COVAX platform, organized last year to develop vaccines against the “SARS-CoV-2” virus, and has cooperated in this field. Azerbaijan supports the distribution of vaccines to countries of the world on the principle of justice and solidarity. Unfortunately, this principle has not been observed. We would like it to be noted that Azerbaijan has acted in accordance with the recommendations of the WHO from the very beginning, has contributed and cooperated in the fight against COVID-19 and continues to fulfill all obligations to ensure the health of its citizens. The correspondence with COVAX states that Azerbaijan is ready to receive these vaccines in terms of its infrastructure.

Today, the COVAX project is not actually carrying out its obligations. This unfair approach to the distribution of vaccines is an indicator of serious problems in the implementation of this project. We consider that this process should be controlled under the COVAX project and specific requirements should be set for manufacturing companies. The Agency has expressed its position in an official letter sent to COVAX and asked the initiators to reconsider their decision.