MEXICO CITY: Mexico's government said on Friday that second doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines could be delayed and private companies will be allowed to purchase the drugs directly as the country seeks to acheive wider coverage more quickly.

Deputy health minister Hugo Lopez Gatell said Mexico was considering delaying the administration of the second dose of the two-dose Pfizer Inc./BioNTech vaccine to patients to help get the first dose to those in need more quickly.

"We're seeing if we need to expand the time period to 35 days," said Lopez Gatell, who added that there would be "no need" to delay the administration of the second doses if enough new vaccine doses arrive in the coming weeks.

The Pfizer vaccine is currently the only one being administered in Mexico, which has reported the fourth-highest death toll from the pandemic worldwide.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador added that any company or local government that wants to acquire vaccines to administer them in Mexico will have authorization.