Corona: Lower Saxony plans up to 60 Corona vaccination centers | NDR.de – news

Status: November 19, 2020 5:15 pm

The state government of Lower Saxony on Thursday presented a concept to establish corona vaccination centers.

Up to 60 centers will be built in Lower Saxony. Vaccination centers are spread throughout the country so that there is one center for every 150,000 inhabitants. In addition, there should be mobile teams that vaccinate, for example, in homes for the elderly and elderly. Lower Saxony wants and will be ready when the first batches of vaccines arrive, said Health Minister Carola Reimann (SPD). Therefore, planning for the construction of vaccination centers in the country must begin now. According to the Minister of the Interior, Boris Pistorius (SPD), the tasks are distributed as follows: The state is responsible for distributing the vaccine, making appointments at the vaccination centers and bears all expenses. In cooperation with the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, the state will also recruit physicians to carry out the vaccinations. Municipalities must find suitable premises and establish and operate vaccination centers on behalf of the state.

Risk groups and healthcare workers first

At the beginning of the vaccination phase, there will probably only be a “very limited number of vaccination doses,” Reimann said. Therefore, the focus will initially be on risk groups and employees of the health system and community facilities. The country will comply with the requirements of the Permanent Commission on Vaccination (Stiko). In the long term, the goal is for general practitioners in private practice to perform corona vaccines, just like other vaccines. “Vaccination centers take on a bridging role until we have sufficient doses of the vaccine and experience with vaccination,” Reimann said.

Reimann: There will be no mandatory vaccination

However, according to Reimann, vaccination centers will likely only be used when enough vaccine is available. She assumes that the mobile teams will initially go to nursing homes and vaccinate those at particular risk there. The minister also stressed that there would be no mandatory vaccination. But trust that many people want to get vaccinated. In the first weeks and months, the vaccination process is documented to identify possible side effects and expand medical knowledge. Reimann believes he will be able to convince vaccine skeptics in the long run if the vaccine can be seen to be effective and has few side effects. At the moment, however, it is not yet completely clear when and how much vaccine Germany will receive, Reimann said.

County Day – Doctors Hard to Find

“It will take a lot of effort to acquire the necessary medical personnel in a short time over a period of many months,” said the director general of the Lower Saxony district assembly, Hubert Meyer. Therefore, cooperation with the Association of Mandatory Health Insurance Physicians is important. According to Reimann, it is planned to create vaccination teams, each consisting of a doctor and several assistants who can vaccinate. Such a team should be able to vaccinate people by the hour.

Dating is primarily online

Meyer sees another difficulty in finding suitable locations for vaccination centers. Due to the stringent requirements they must meet, the focus is likely to be on city councils and event centers, Meyer said. Among other things, vaccination centers must be easily accessible to citizens and have a stable Internet connection to be able to organize appointments. Because, according to Reimann, dating should primarily be done online. All those who do not have access to the Internet should also have the opportunity to make an appointment in the same way, for example through a citizen’s phone.

Cooling the mRNA vaccine is a challenge

Disaster control, relief organizations and the police will participate in organizing mass vaccinations. According to Pistorius, in the coming weeks it will be announced where the vaccination centers will be installed and how many there will be. Independent districts and cities did not receive the vaccination concept until Thursday and now have to find suitable locations. The country sees great challenges in the need to keep mRNA vaccines constantly cooled to a temperature of minus 70 degrees. According to Reimann, a logistics company should handle the delivery of the vaccine, including the necessary dry ice. Health insurance companies cover the costs of vaccines.