A DOST official allays fears of having COVID-19 vaccine sans clinical trials in the Philippines.
An official of one of the agencies under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) on Saturday allayed fears that a COVID-19 vaccine would be approved for use through an emergency use authorization in the Philippines even without prior local clinical trials.
In an interview on GMA Network’s Dobol B sa News TV, Dr. Jaime Montoya — the executive director of the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development under the Department of Science and Technology — said that an emergency use authorization was also a form of approval given to vaccines even if they haven’t yet completed their clinical trial as long as they could provide an evidence that the results of clinical trials or interim analysis were good.
“Kahit ito ay emergency use authorization, wala pong mga shortcuts. Ito ay masusing pag-aaralan ng ating mga expert, unang-una ng ating vaccine panel. Dadaan din ‘yan sa ethics review. At ikatlo ang regulatory approval na ibibigay ng FDA,” Montoya said in an interview.
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Montoya also said that those who would receive the COVID-19 vaccine in the Philippines would be closely monitored for one to two years at the minimum in order to ensure efficacy.
He added that the vaccine expert panel already reviewed initial data even before a vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in the Philippines.
Moreover, Montoya said that the Food and Drug Administration would also check if the COVID-19 vaccine developer had been given an emergency use authorization (EUA) in the country of origin.
Montoya’s statement came after President Rodrigo Duterte issued an executive order allowing the Food and Drug Administration to grant an emergency use authorization of COVID-19 vaccines.
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