No one is applying for bird flu vaccine in PH —FDA
There is still no application for Avian influenza vaccines in the Philippines, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) bared.
While there are three potential applicants for bird flu vaccines registration, none of them has lodged their official application to the drug regulatory agency.
"[F]or us to have the details, they have to lodge the application. For now, it is still a speculation. But we know that there could be three but unfortunately, we cannot give you the details of these possible three applicants," FDA Director Jesusa Joyce Cirunay said in a Palace briefing on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
"So, if they do not lodge the application and for it to be part of the registration we cannot say that we are in process of such an application," Cirunay added.
FDA Director General Samuel Zacate explained that information on the three possible applicants for the bird flu vaccines is only based on their "intel," however they cannot directly encourage the probable applicants to apply as the FDA implements a "zero contact policy."
As regulators, he said, they can only coordinate with their foreign counterparts on the status of foreign vaccine companies' applications and hope that they could also apply in the Philippines.
"So, what we can do is to ask some regulators outside the country – the foreign FDAs kung ano po iyong mga status ng mga application sa kanila (to know about the status of their applications) so that if they tend to apply a least alam na namin na may possibilities sila pero ibig sabihin po (we know that there are possibilities but that means that) we cannot tell them the company 'Go ahead, apply here,' because it will be a conflict of interest for the FDA," Zacate said.
Aside from being in contact with their foreign counterparts, the FDA can also only release a media announcement encouraging all possible importers to apply for veterinary vaccines such as for Avian influenza and African Swine Flu (ASF).
This has prompted President Marcos to cite the urgency of veterinary vaccines as this might affect the country's agriculture and nutrition needs.
During a sectoral meeting, he directed the FDA and the Department of Agriculture (DA) to address the issues of work delegation in order to approve the necessary drugs for Avian and African Swine Flu.
In a separate Palace briefing, DA Undersecretary Roger Navarro disclosed that they have encouraged a vaccine manufacturer in Vietnam to apply in the Philippines.
"Right now, because of the talks that we have in Vietnam, we really encourage them to apply and we really encourage them to get in touch with the authorities so that we will be able to get their approvals," Navarro said.
"And the DA Secretary has already put forward the intention to help them in this regard. And I understand that there was a discussion this morning, and we hope with that with the discussion this morning, it will fast-track the approvals," Navarro added.
He also bared that the foreign manufacturer has expressed its "more than hundred percent" intention to apply in the country.