Coronavirus Chronicle in Moldova: Vaccine for the Republic - "An Elusive Dream"?

Marina DRAGALIN Despite a slight decrease in the spread of infection, the epidemiological situation in Moldova remains extremely tense: doctors are on the brink, beds are running out and according to the Minister of Health, one can only "dream" of a vaccine Lockdowns and vaccinations that have begun here and there are not yet able to slow down the COVID-19 pandemic spread. To date, there nearly 80 million cases were registered worldwide. The infection and its aftermath have killed nearly 1.75 million people, and death rates continue rising. More than 13 thousand people die every day. The global mortality rate reached 3%. Recently, the "pandemic" news wave has been especially large. The new coronavirus strain discovered in the UK has caused panic around the world and most countries have closed flights with this country. Others, such as Switzerland, looked closely at the cases and found mutations as well. It is worth noting that the British Advisory Council on New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats confirmed that the identified variant of the coronavirus is spreading faster and requires more caution. According to preliminary estimates, the new SARS-CoV-2 mutation may be 70% more infectious than the already familiar "crown". UK Health Minister Matt Hancock confirmed the situation with the new coronavirus type being dire. “The new COVID-19 strain is out of control and people should act like they already have the virus, especially in the areas of England with the highest levels of restrictions. This coronavirus strain is a huge problem. This is a deadly infection that we needed to keep under control, but the new COVID-19 mutation made the task more difficult,” the official said. The only hope is that the humanitarian and economic crisis affecting the UK will be quickly curbed. The Foggy Albion was getting itself prepared for supply problems due to Brexit and barriers to the EU border return, but the mutation has isolated the island two weeks earlier. The country is already predicted to lose its place within the five largest economies in the world. Another high-profile news was that the European Medicines Agency approved the use of vaccines from the American Pfizer and the German BioNTech, in the European Union. The COVID-19 vaccination campaign starts on Sunday 27 December. EU countries are now deploying a cold chain to transport vaccines. Doubts about the vaccine effectiveness, which arose with new strains’ emergence, were dispelled by experts from the World Health Organization. “Despite the fact that we are observing a number of changes, mutations, none of them had a significant effect on the susceptibility of the virus to the currently used therapeutic agents, drugs, vaccines under development,” Sumya Swaminathan, Chief Researcher at WHO said. In addition, BioNTech announced it will take only 6 weeks to develop a vaccine modification against the new coronavirus strain. Despite the fact that the vaccine will soon become available in neighboring countries, it seems that it is too early to talk about mass vaccinations in Moldova. As the de facto ex-Minister of Health Viorica Dumbraveanu put it, the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine is “an elusive dream for Moldova”. The fact is that the Moldovan healthcare system is simply not able to provide the necessary conditions for its delivery. “We have to analyze all logistic aspects - the process of transportation, storage. In the midst of a pandemic, we equipped the NAHP laboratories with refrigerators. There are vaccines that need special requirements for transportation and storage at minus 70 degrees, which is not feasible for Moldova,” Dumbraveanu explained. Almost ex-Prime Minister Ion Chicu is no less pessimistic about the chances of getting a vaccine, but for completely different reasons. The politician is convinced that partner countries will provide it only after meeting their own needs, since production capacities are limited and the needs are very high. “The vaccine will appear through the COVAX mechanism to the region when it becomes available. Hopefully this will happen after the New Year. But we need to understand one thing. This is a struggle similar to the one we had in April, when our goods, our protective equipment were stolen from Chinese airports. National egoism is hidden behind the slogans of solidarity from partner countries, even though they say they will help us. The vaccine will not reach us until they meet their needs. There may be a small number of doses for appearance’s sake,” Chicu stressed. Given the epidemiological situation in Moldova, the vaccine will definitely not hurt. Almost 124 thousand people have already been infected in the country, more than 35 thousand are under doctors’ supervision. The "crown" has already claimed the lives of 2,848 citizens. The health care system is on the brink: there are still not enough places in intensive care, there is a serious crisis with the medical staff. Political upheavals complicate the situation. The chairman of the European Left party Grigorie Petrenco openly sounded the alarm; he believes that “vaccination in Moldova has already failed”. He cites the example of EU countries that are actively preparing for mass vaccination: they deploy centers, mobilize personnel, and solve logistical problems.