Dummy containers of COVID-19 vaccines are unloaded from a plane at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on Feb. 2, 2021, during a vaccine transportation drill. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — President Moon Jae-in made an on-site inspection Wednesday of South Korea’s preparations for COVID-19 vaccine receipt, handling and distribution, as inoculations are scheduled to begin here later this month.
He visited the Korean Air’s cargo terminal station at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, where a pan-governmental mock drill was under way ahead of the shipment of the initial batch of foreign-made vaccines.
Later in the day, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said it approved the special import of 117,000 doses of Pfizer’s vaccine, which the nation plans to bring in this month through the COVAX Facility, the World Health Organization’s global vaccine provision program.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) on Tuesday applied for the procedure, which allows for importation of unauthorized medicines needed to cope with public health crises.
Remdesivir, a COVID-19 treatment, was introduced under the system last year.
The combined rehearsal began Monday for a three-day run, joined by the military, police and the transportation ministry, as well as other agencies, such as the KDCA, the National Fire Agency and the Korea Customs Service.
The drill is aimed at ensuring perfection in the overall vaccine delivery and distribution system by simulating the arrival of products at the airport and transfer of them to a vaccine center at the National Medical Center in Seoul via a logistics center in Pyeongtaek, Gyeongi Province.
The president received a related briefing from KDCA Commissioner Jeong Eun-kyeong and looked around storage facilities at the cargo station.
A Korean Air official said the firm has a contingency plan to run a “cool cargo center” in case of an emergency situation. The military and police focused on gearing up for the possibility of terrorist attacks.
President Moon Jae-in (L) receives a salute from a police officer during his inspection of South Korea’s COVID-19 vaccine delivery system at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on Feb. 3, 2021. (Yonhap)
Moon stressed the importance of close teamwork of relevant authorities in the vaccination program to remove any concerns citizens may have.
He also raised the need for through preparations under various scenarios, citing a recent report that health care workers in the U.S. state of Oregon, stranded in a snowstorm, gave impromptu shots to strangers at the roadside rather than let leftover doses expire.
Jeong reported to Moon that her agency is already in preparation for a total of 15 different scenarios and that it will more carefully review other emergencies possible in each stage.
Moon’s inspection of the drill was meant to check vaccination preparations in person and encourage relevant officials to do their best for impeccable procedures, according to Cheong Wa Dae.
The defense ministry launched operations Thursday of a support team that will be charged with managing the transportation and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, which will enter the nation next month.
Last week, the government launched a military-led task force on the transportation of vaccines.
(Yonhap)
