Georgian government plans to vaccinate 70% of population by July
Vaccination in Georgia
The Georgian government plans to vaccinate 70% of the adult population by July. According to the head of the Georgian National Center for Disease Control, Amiran Gamkrelidze, a new immunization plan against Covid-19 was discussed at the Immunization Council.
“This plan aims to have 70% of the population vaccinated by July, which is necessary if we want to stop, contain and end the pandemic with minimum losses. Everyone agrees that the main way to end the pandemic and epidemic is universal immunization”, Gamkrelidze said.
According to him, the goal is ambitious, and when asked by a journalist how it is planned to achieve it amid the abolition of the so-called “green passports”, Gamkrelidze replied:
“Our expectations for the implementation of this plan are based on a stronger communication campaign, monetary incentives, and convincing you [journalists] that the main way out of the pandemic is vaccination. Please tell as much as you can about vaccinations. We encourage the population to come and get vaccinated.”
Deputy Minister of Health of Georgia Tamar Gabunia says the goal was determined by the recommendations of the World Health Organization.
“The target groups for vaccination this year are the same – the elderly, people with chronic diseases, medical personnel, and other groups who, by virtue of their profession, are at high risk. The plans also emphasize the importance of administering booster dose”, said Tamar Gabunia.
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Vaccination against coronavirus began in Georgia on March 15, 2021. Vaccinations in the country were mainly carried out with four vaccines – German-American Pfizer, British AstraZeneca, Chinese Sinopharm (Beijing) and Sinovac.
As Amiran Gamkrelidze explains, unlike AstraZeneca and Pfizer, Chinese-made vaccines have a shelf life of two to three years. Up to 17,000 doses of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine had expired in Georgia and had to be disposed of.
According to the previous national plan, the country’s goal was to vaccinate 60% of the population by the end of 2021, although by that time 1,224,149 people, or only 42.6% of the population over 18 years of age, have been fully vaccinated.
