THD NewsDesk, New Delhi
Having trained 6000 staff members across its various bodies nationwide, India’s largest hospital chain Apollo has said that it’s ready to administer one million coronavirus vaccine doses a day. However, the government has yet not given clarity on how the vaccines are to be distributed, and whether or not will private health-care networks be involved, said Managing Director Suneeta Reddy. Reddy also said that the company’s talks with concerned officials in New Delhi was yet to provide any firm guidance.
In an interview on Tuesday, Reddy said, “We need to know if the government wants to handle the whole thing or allow the private sector to do it.” She added, “The issue here is how can we double the amount of people that can be vaccinated,” saying that the Apollo Group is willing to help in any capacity.
A “flood of Covid vaccines” is premeditated in the next five to six months, according to Krishna Ella, chairman of Bharat Biotech International Ltd. If the government does decide to work with its significant network of private hospitals for vaccine distribution, it could be crucial to achieving success in containing outbreak.
Apollo has told its clients that a shot “should be available in 60-120 days”, and that the customers will “be the first ones to know about the vaccines.”
Apollo Hospitals has also held talks with the Serum Institute of India Ltd., but Reddy said that developers are awaiting directions from New Delhi “because all of them have committed capacity to the government first.”
During a phase that saw private hospitals being criticized for negligence amidst the pandemic, the 1983 established Apollo Group has already treated more than 30,000 cases and tested more than 400,000 people.
