GENEVA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th November, 2020) Switzerland has allotted additional 100 million Swiss francs ($109 million) for its fund earmarked to be spent on purchase of coronavirus vaccines, the government said in a press release on Wednesday.
In May, the Swiss government allotted 300 million francs for the purchase of enough vaccine doses of its 8.6 million population.
"At its meeting on November 11, the federal government decided to increase this amount by 100 million francs in order to have sufficient room for maneuver for the purchase of additional vaccines. So far, the Confederation has concluded a contract with two manufacturers," the press release read.
These two manufacturers are US pharmaceutical company Moderna and UK company AstraZeneca, with which the Swiss government has already secured a joint total of almost 10 million doses. Additionally, Switzerland is part of the global COVAX initiative, which potentially promises another 3.2 million doses.
"It is currently not possible to say when a vaccine will be available. However, the Federal Office of Public Health estimates that the first vaccinations can be carried out in Switzerland during the first half of 2021," the press release said.
The Swiss government added that it maintains contact with other manufacturers of "promising candidate vaccines" to potentially sign additional contracts.
As of Wednesday, Switzerland has confirmed 99,276 coronavirus cases and 755 related deaths. The Swiss statistics include figures from Liechtenstein.
