The Director-General of Health says while the country doesn’t currently have plans to develop its own Covid-19 vaccine, it’ll be working closely with Australia and international vaccine developers, with details expected “within the next week”.
Dr Ashley Bloomfield said today there had been talk and interest in New Zealand from research groups about developing a Kiwi vaccine.
However, Dr Bloomfield said because of its high cost: “At this point, we’re not anticipating New Zealand’s best endeavours are to put funding and effort into trying to develop a vaccine but, rather, to work alongside other vaccine developers.”
He said this didn’t mean Kiwi scientists couldn’t contribute to the research effort or take part in clinical trials and be in the queue to receive whatever vaccine turns out to be successful.
“There is very active work underway between ourselves and MBIE to finalise an approach we’re going to take as a country [regarding vaccines].”
With nearly a hundred vaccine trials worldwide, Dr Bloomfield said the country is “very keen on taking an Anzac approach” and working closely with Australia.
Prime Minister Jacinda Arden said there’s a difference between the development and manufacturing of a vaccine.
“Even if we’re not necessarily directly involved in one part, we certainly can be in another,” she said.
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