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Bogotá, October 7, 2020. In Prevention and Action, Carlos Alvarado, medical director of Janssen for Latin America, a Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical company, spoke about the execution of phase III for the consolidation of the vaccine and the projections for its massive distribution.

In his remarks, he stated that the process of defining eligible people to test the vaccine candidate is underway, which he cataloged as having a "fairly safe profile and with the ability to provide an important immune response."

"We are looking for adults over 18 years of age, who will be divided into healthy and with comorbidities. Ineligible are pregnant women, people with serious uncontrolled diseases or diseases that compromise the immune system," he said.

Alvarado explained that people interested, and who comply with all these requirements, may contact the authorized national line 01 800 752 2231. "At the centers that are located in different parts of the country, and that have been made available thanks to close collaboration with the authorities, will give out questionnaires and run tests that will facilitate this selection of volunteers," he added.

The first results, he detailed, of this phase III can be expected in January 2021. "We will probably have some information that will allow us to think about the use of the vaccine on a more massive level," Alvarado noted.

The storage capacity and the logistics of distribution of the possible vaccine are an issue in which all the countries of the world are currently working, Alvarado said, as he defined Colombia, with the "necessary capacity to do so."

Finally, the representative of Janssen said that they have expanded the capacity so that in 2021 they can have at least one billion doses to be used in the general population.