Samir Geagea, the head of the Lebanese Forces Party, has urged the Lebanese Ministry of Health to allow the private sector to import vaccines from abroad.
In a statement today, Geagea said, "It appears from the initial phase of vaccination distribution in Lebanon that if the process remains limited to just the Ministry of Health, it will take more than a year and a half to achieve the required community immunity, at the very least. We can no longer bear any more victims, infections, or economic collapse, especially as we are in dire need of reviving our economy from its current state." The statement added, "The Ministry of Health must, without any delay or procrastination, allow the private sector to import vaccines according to the scientific criteria applicable in the ministry, because without the participation of the private sector, we are at risk of losing more family and loved ones due to increased infections. We will also suffer more economically than we have lost so far." He concluded by calling on the President of the Republic and the caretaker Prime Minister to give immediate instructions to the Ministry of Health, to avoid hindering the private sector and allow it to import vaccines from abroad without delay. The health authorities in Lebanon had launched the vaccination campaign just one day after receiving the first batch of vaccines.
