Covid: Hospitals unclear on vaccine stock, pricing

With just a day to go for opening up the third dose of Covid-19 vaccine for all adults, several hospitals across said the roadmap for hospitals in terms of supplies and pricing of the vaccine is unclear.

"We have been caught unawares. We will review the stock situation and make a forecast plan," said a senior executive at a leading private hospital. Top executives said that they will meet on Saturday to decide on these issues.

According to them they don't know if they have to follow the same price regime. "There is no enthusiasm among the private healthcare sector on whether the price of the vaccines should continue to remain the same as it was," said Girdhar Gyani, director-general of Association of Private Healthcare Providers (APHI).

Despite starting precaution doses and vaccination for children, daily average vaccination administered in private hospitals have seen a significant drop. Hence, the new announcement on Friday did not excite hospitals.

"The vaccination has dipped in the last few months as Covid-19 cases recede. If this continues we are not prepared to suffer any heavy loss," added Gyani.