Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia reschedules COVID-19 vaccinations amid Pfizer delay

Saudi Arabia has rescheduled appointments for the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine due Pfizer delivery delays, the Ministry of Health announced on Thursday in a tweet.

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Authorities said that those with appointments to receive their first dose will be rescheduled “due to the delay of the manufacturer in supplying the Kingdom and all countries of the world… due to the suspension of [Pfizer’s] factory to expand production lines.”

Those who are scheduled to receive their second dose should expect an SMS message with their updated appointment to get the shot. The ministry also clarified that those who do not receive a message should go to the designated vaccination center on their original scheduled date.

Pfizer Inc is facing criticism, and potential legal action, over its surprise move to temporarily delay COVID-19 vaccine shipments to countries that fear disruptions could throw their inoculation campaigns into disarray.

Pfizer and BioNTech announced last week that to scale up manufacturing in Europe to deliver many more doses in the second quarter they must first trim production at a Puurs, Belgium, vaccine-making plant.

They aim to be back on schedule by January 25, the companies said.

With Reuters

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