NHA chief: Vaccine demand-supply gap reduced from 11:1 to 6.5:1

The demand and supply mismatch for Covid-19 vaccines remains high at 6.5:1 but has improved from 11:1 a week ago, reducing the waiting time on Co-WIN for people trying to book an appointment, National Health Authority chief executive Ram Sewak Sharma has said.

Sharma told TOI scheduling of vaccination slots was a function of availability of vaccines, and the “noise around Co-WIN” would subside as the current shortage was a temporary situation.

“The noise started surfacing particularly after registrations for the 18 to 44 age group were opened. You will be amazed to learn how steeply skewed the demand-supply for vaccines is. As supply catches up with demand, this noise around CoWIN will be put to rest, since it’s unfounded,” Sharma said.

According to Sharma, over 23 crore people were registered till May 21, whereas there was a backlog of 9 crore waiting to be vaccinated.

“However, what is interesting to note is that 5.5 crore out of the 9 crore backlog comes from the 18 to 44 years age bracket. This is primarily attributable to shortfall in supply, which is evident from various state governments restricting vaccinations for this age group,” he said.