“Poland has contracted 175 million doses” of COVID-19 vaccine? Netizens say so, but it was considered a mistake

Information is circulating among Polish netizens in social media that Poland has already contracted 175 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and plans to further purchase. Entries on this topic are quickly becoming popular, especially in anti-vaccine circles. Here is an example of the content (original spelling): “As you can see, Poland has already contracted 175 Million doses intends to buy more “;” There is no money to fight hunger, but people have poisoned a really magical substance! “; “There are 175 million doses, there will be more”; “Poland ordered 175 million doses of the elixir of immortality. If you do not count, it will not end with three doses even if children take it at the age of one year”; “The third dose is said to make those who take it immune. But why did the government contract? 175 Million doses vaccinations? He is negotiating future purchases.”

Figures from the section magazine

Where did Internet users get 175 million doses? A survey of the first page of the response of the Ministry of Health was published on August 25 of this year on the Internet, which was received by a citizen when asked about the number of COVID-19 vaccines purchased by the Polish government.

In the letter, the ministry explained that all purchases are made under a joint EU mechanism and continues: “In the first batch, 62 million doses of vaccines were contracted under prior purchase agreements from five producers (AstraZeneca, CureVac, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna and Pfizer / BioNTech) and this figure was noted in the National Immunization Program (NPS) published in December 2020. However, Poland has entered into purchase agreements with Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech for new delivery in 2021. 113 million doses of the vaccine against COVID-19 , but it must be borne in mind that the majority of these preparations are two doses.In addition, Poland has joined the third agreement between the European Commission and Pfizer / BioNTech, (…) and no decision has yet been made to divide vaccines under the union mechanism “.

So netizens add two numbers appearing in the magazine: 62 million and 113 million. They get 175 million of the contracted doses. The service has also made such calculations wPrawo.plWho discussed the ministry’s message in the text “A vaccine every six months? Poland has already contracted with 175 million doses and entered into another agreement between the European Commission and Pfizer.” In it we read, among other things, that “62 million doses were ordered under the first contract, and 113 million under the second contract. And this is not the end yet, because Poland has joined the third.”

“As you can see, Poland has already contracted 175 million doses and intends to buy more. If the vaccination campaign against Covid-19 is going to end with two doses, no one will order such an amount of preparations. We already have the supply of five doses. And we are contracting more “- wrote the author Text.

The Ministry of Health: 113 million doses contracted

However, as Konkret24, the Ministry of Health’s communications office explains, the ministry’s message “shows that initially there were 62 million, and now 113 million have been contracted.” Thus, this larger number of doses includes the smaller number that was previously ordered. They should not be added. The Ministry reports this in the text of the wPrawo.pl . website There is problem.

At the same time, it confirms that the government has entered into a third agreement with Pfizer / BioNTech, but there is no division of doses under it yet. “If necessary, we do not exclude the purchase of additional doses,” – wrote the Liaison Office of the Ministry of Health.