COVID-19: Trade groups press to buy vaccinesSPECIAL TREATMENT: The trade groups asked that the government relax regulations that require vaccine deals to be made between the government and drugmakersBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterMajor trade groups yesterday called on the government to allow companies to buy COVID-19 vaccines on their own to help maintain global supply chains amid a local outbreak. A healthcare worker prepares a dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine in Taipei on Friday. The trade groups also pushed for companies to have the freedom to vaccinate their employees after frontline workers and other at-risk people receive shots. Deregulation of vaccine imports would help take pressure off the government, which has had difficulty acquiring sufficient doses of vaccines, it added. “The ministry welcomes and is thankful for private companies seeking to obtain more vaccines,” the ministry said in a statement.

Source: Taipei Times May 31, 2021 15:56 UTC