AstraZeneca vaccines on their way

Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton announced yesterday that the first doses of the much-anticipated AstraZeneca COVID vaccine will arrive in the island this month.

"Some 14,400 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine will be delivered on or before March 11 and this is a part of the COVAX arrangement. This supply represents the first instalment of a total allocation of some 124,800 in the first instance," said Tufton. Speaking a press conference yesterday, he also said that the 1.8 million doses via the African medical supply platform that the Government was also working on have been approved and will be supplied to Jamaica starting in April.

Jamaica has already signed off on a quantity of vaccines through COVAX for 450,000 Jamaicans. No date was mentioned as to when the roll-out of the immunisation process would start for the AstraZeneca doses.

"As stated before, the mandate is to identify and source some 3.5 million doses of vaccines by March 2021 to apply to approximately 65 per cent of the Jamaican population," Tufton said. The second batch of the AstraZeneca was expected by May. Jamaica is also expected to get 50,000 doses as a gift from India this week.

Tufton outlined that healthcare workers would be vaccinated first, followed by government officials, persons 60 years and over, as well members of the police force, army, and persons who work in the education sector.