The Nepal cabinet has formed a secretary-level committee comprising officials from the foreign ministry, finance ministry, and the home ministry for the procurement of COVID vaccine, reported The Himalayan Times. 

On Monday, Pfizer Inc, a major pharmaceutical company, announced its results from the phase III trial of the COVID vaccine with a 90 percent success ratio. The breakthrough in developing the vaccine comes as big relief when the world has been facing a second wave of the spread. 

Quoting sources, The Himalayan Times said officials from the committee will research and study the vaccines being developed by foreign countries and then will formulate the policy to bring them here in Nepal.  

As the total number of cases surpassed the 200,000 mark in Nepal, the government on Tuesday announced a major change in policy to deal with the pandemic. An aide to Prime Minister K P Oli said the government will conduct free COVID-19 tests and provide medication free of costs in all government hospitals.

For a long time, the opposition in Nepal had been criticizing the government for continuing a nominal charge for the COVID tests. As the cases surged in the country, the government relented to the demands of the opposition parties. 

While speaking to Reuters, Surya Thapa, an aide to the prime minister, however, added, “Those who want fast services and wish to pay can continue to go to private hospitals.”