Mutahi Kagwe: Give us cash, we buy you Covid-19 vaccines

Companies that wish to import Covid-19 vaccines are free to do so, but must channel all their purchases through the Ministry of Health.

Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe yesterday opened a window for private sector firms keen on procuring Covid-19 jabs for their employees to make orders through their umbrella body, the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (Kepsa), but warned that such imports would not be sold for profit.

He insisted that investors seeking to buy and sell Covid-19 vaccines should kiss that dream goodbye, as the government policy on free administration of the life-saving jabs would not change.

“It’s worth remembering that all vaccines in Kenya are procured by the Government of Kenya and offered free of charge,” Mr Kagwe said.

Only one type of vaccine, the Pfizer-BioNTech, has so far received full market authorisation by the World Health Organization.

“Kepsa will contribute money through its members and deposit it to the Treasury account for the Health ministry. The ministry will then take up and procure vaccines via the African Union and bring them to the country for the respective Kepsa members to administer them to their members,” explained the national Covid-19 Vaccine task force chairperson, Dr Willis Akhwale, yesterday.

“They will not be allowed to sell any vaccine once it’s brought into the country; everything will be free and shall be conducted in designated areas that have been mapped out by the Health ministry,” he added.

Dr Akhwale said the vaccines the private sector will import will be used to vaccinate its members who may have missed out on the ongoing immunisation due to their ineligibility on the priority list.

He said Kepsa has agreed to buy the Johnson & Johnson single dose Covid-19 vaccine but has not reached a consensus on how many doses will be shipped in. Besides procuring the vaccines on behalf of Kepsa through the African Union, the government will also incorporate the Covax facility in upcoming shipments depending on how long the private sector is willing to be part of the collaboration.

Kepsa, via its communications department, yesterday told the Nation that the alliance will not be selling any vaccines but will stick to the Health ministry guidelines by administering them free of charge.

This comes as the Health ministry issued a stern warning to rogue health workers selling Covid-19 vaccines and some politicians who are interfering with the ongoing Covid-19 vaccinations.

Mr Kagwe urged the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) to conduct further investigations on the rogue health workers and facilities whose jobs and registration is now at stake.

“Administration of any vaccine should be done by a qualified staff who has received recent training from the Ministry of Health. It’s immoral and disturbing to see that some politicians have begun to politicise the vaccination process for their own gains,” the CS said.

“We ask KMPDU to immediately begin to deregister institutions that are charging citizens or conducting the vaccinations unlawfully,” he added.

Acting Health Director-General Patrick Amoth warned that the illegal vaccine administration may lead to adverse side effects depending on the environment in which they were administered.

“Vaccines are stored and transported under stringent measures and moving it from different points while altering the required temperature may affect its efficacy,” he warned.

“We urge everyone to get vaccines only from designated areas approved by the Ministry of Health, otherwise, you will likely get adverse events such as Anaphylaxis (which refers to life threatening allergic reactions). Health workers should ensure fidelity to the oath that they took and should not be swayed by politicians,” he added.

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