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For the Portuguese included in the first phase of vaccination who are not in homes and long-term care units, there will be 1,200 vaccination points throughout the country available to administer vaccines against covid-19. The health centers will be the places where this drug will be available and administered, explained the coordinator of the workgroup of the vaccine, Francisco Ramos, this Thursday, during the presentation of the covid-19 vaccination plan.
The vaccine will be administered by appointment. “A system in which the health services identify who belongs to the risk groups will be privileged and we will be proactive in calling them. This will be done based on the information available in the health centers and, knowing that there are a number of Portuguese who do not use them, there will be an alternative that these people can use to have access to the vaccine in the health centers ”, he said. .
There will be a website with relevant information on the vaccination process and a telephone support line for the general population and health professionals.
“In terms of logistics, a more robust operation than usual is being prepared,” said Francisco Ramos. If vaccination against influenza is a decentralized process close to vaccination sites, vaccination against covid-19 will focus on a “command and control logic”.
Costa: “We are in a better situation than last week”
“We can already see the light at the end of the tunnel, but not all vaccines arrive on the first day, rather they arrive gradually throughout the year”, explained the Prime Minister, António Costa, noting that the priority is “to protect us protect ”, such as medical personnel and security forces. Second, they will be people with health problems. A plan that will be “transparent”, stressed the Prime Minister.
António Costa praised “the scientific community” for making possible what would normally take seven years to become possible in just over a year. “We have good reasons to be confident of success. But this was the easy part. The difficulties will begin now, ”said the prime minister.
In what was the last intervention of the afternoon, Costa recalled that “vaccination will be optional, free and distributed to the entire population”, explaining that the operation will begin with few doses “in the first weeks” and “fewer people ”To vaccinate. “We are in a better moment today than last week and much better than in March,” he concluded.
It is in three phases that the Portuguese population will be vaccinated against covid-19. The coordinator of the working group created by the Government to define the vaccination plan says that the main objectives of this vaccination plan are “to reduce mortality” and “hospitalizations in intensive care units.”
Francisco Ramos presented this Thursday the different phases of the vaccination process, which the Prime Minister defined as an “immense effort”:
First phase
“The first set of priority groups are people 50 years or older with any of the following pathologies: heart failure, coronary heart disease, kidney failure and chronic respiratory disease with ventilatory support, that is, the exact coincidence of the most frequent pathologies in severe cases of the disease. People residing in nursing homes and entering long-term care units and their professionals, the protection of outbreaks in the most vulnerable populations, the elderly and, finally, Health professionals directly involved in the provision of care.“He explained. The security forces are also included in this group.
Second stage
“The definition of a second phase of two groups is already proposed: people 65 years or older without pathologies, recognizing that the elderly are the most vulnerable group. The second group of people, in this case from 50 to 64, I like widening of pathologies – diabetes, active malignancy, kidney disease, liver failure, obesity, high blood pressure. The estimate is that we are talking about 950 thousand people in the first phase, 250 thousand residents at home, hospitalized in intensive care units and their professionals, 400 thousand people in this group of people with comorbidities and 300 thousand people in the group of professionals . For the second phase, the estimate is 1.8 million people over 65 years of age and 900 thousand people in this group with these characteristics ”, explained the coordinator of workgroup, Francisco Ramos.
Third phase
The third phase will look like “The rest of the population”, explains the coordinator of the working group created by the Government to define the vaccination plan, saying that this structure depends on the “supply rate” of the vaccines. “If for some reason this rate is slower than the base scenario, new priority groups will have to be created and a third group defined,” Francisco Ramos explained.
Vaccination begins in January
The vaccination of the Portuguese against covid-19 will begin in January, confirmed the coordinator, adding that the workgroup You still don’t feel confident in estimating the specific day the first wave of vaccination can begin.
“In an optimistic scenario, the first wave of vaccination will occur between January and February. In what will be the typical scenario, January through March, if things go worse than expected in terms of delivery, January through April. What can be said for sure is that in January we will be in a position to start the vaccination process”Francisco Ramos said.
“Not all vaccines arrive on the first day, but they arrive gradually throughout the year,” António Costa explained, noting that the priority is “to protect those who will protect us,” such as medical personnel and security forces. Second, they will be people with health problems. A plan that will be “transparent”, stressed the Prime Minister.
Agreement with six manufacturers and 22 million vaccines en route to Portugal
“Currently there are six agreements concluded. The first was AstraZeneca, on August 14, which has 300 million [de doses] for the European Union and 6.9 million for Portugal. The second for Sanofia / GSK, where the doses are not defined. The Johnson & Johnson group already in October, 200 million [de doses] for the European Union and 4.5 million for Portugal. Pfizer with 4.5 million for Portugal. The value of CureVac is practically agreed, between four and five million. The last contract signed, that of Moderna, has a lower amount, 80 million [para a Europa] of which we have 1.8 million ”, explained the president of Infarmed, Rui Santos Ivo.
The first vaccine to reach Portuguese territory, if approved, should be that of Pfizer, just three days after the “yes” of the European Medicines Agency, that is, the first day of January 2021. This was said this Wednesday. – Pfizer Portugal Medical Director, Susana Castro Marques, in an interview with RTP.
The pharmaceutical representative also explained that Pfizer and BioNTech will ensure all stages of transportation and distribution of the vaccine, from the production plants to the vaccination sites designated by the Portuguese authorities. “We are going to have an air distribution component to some key points in the country or region and then a ground transportation network and then distribute from these centers to other designated locations,” he added.
Laboratories awaiting authorization
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) announced on Monday that it had received two requests for conditional marketing authorization for vaccines developed by BioNTech and Pfizer and Moderna, hoping to issue a decision “in a few weeks.”
After this green light from the European regulator, it is the turn of the European Commission to “accelerate its decision-making process with a view to granting a conditional marketing authorization valid in all EU member states and the European Economic Area in a few days. ”, The EMA explained in a note.
