The Presidential Advisor on Health says private health facilities will not be allowed to sell the Covid-19 vaccines as they are meant to be administered to the populace for free.

Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare speaking on Newsfile, Saturday, said private health facilities will be allowed to finance the procurement of the vaccine but not for profit purposes.

“If the private sector at the private health facility wants to finance the procurement of the vaccines they are free to do that through the Ministry of Health but they cannot bring it in and sell for profit. No, we are giving everything for free of charge,” he stated.

The initiative, according to Mr Nsiah-Asare, is to help vaccinate the majority of the citizenry without financially burdening them.

“We don’t want money to be a barrier, so there should be no financial barrier to anybody.

He further indicated that the private health sectors can help in the vaccination exercise by offering their facilities as vaccination centres.   

“Private hospitals like Nyaho Medical Centre and the rest, we will be using them as vaccination centres because we want the vaccines to reach people who need it.”

His comment comes after the first shipment of 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine made by the Serum Institute of India arrived in the country on Wednesday, February 24, 2021.

The country is among 145 countries listed to receive vaccines from a number of suppliers through the COVAX Facility according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

According to the Presidential Adviser on Health, the distribution of the newly arrived Covid-19 vaccines doses is expected to take off on Tuesday, March 2.

He further added that schools and church places will also be used as vaccination centres.

For people who can not move out of their homes, Mr Nsiah-Asare stated that health workers will be deployed to vaccinate them in their various houses.