The decision on a centralised procurement was made by the government on Wednesday. The monkeypox vaccine will be purchased from the company Bavarian Nordic and the antiviral drug tecovirimat from the manufacturer SIGA. A total of 40,000 doses of the vaccine and 500 units of the antiviral will be made available to the public on acquisition. The government expects about 20,000 people to be vaccinated.
At the same time, the army will procure 60,000 doses of the vaccine and 500 antiviral treatments to ensure a contingency stock which can also be used in the event of an outbreak of other smallpox viruses.
The army pharmacy will handle the purchase and then make the doses available to the cantons. The final procurement is subject to approval by the finance ministry. The costs of the vaccine, the antiviral drug and the distribution will add up to approximately CHF8.6 million (around $8.9 million).
More than 400 cases of monkeypox have been recorded in Switzerland, mainly in the cantons of Vaud, Geneva and Zurich. Almost all of these cases have been reported in men, with only three cases in women.
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