Limpopo’s vaccine rollout to continue as planned
Health MEC, Phophi Ramathuba has confirmed that the province's vaccine rollout plan will still go ahead after challenges emerged relating to the initial batch that was procured nationally.
Earlier this week, it was found that the batch of Astrazeneca which was procured as vaccine against Covid-19, has an expiry date of April and shows less efficacy against the strain of the virus more recently discovered in South Africa as opposed to the first one.
A national announcement followed which halted the vaccine rollout plan, but yesterday morning, Minister Zweli Mkhize announced that nine million doses of a vaccine manufactured by Johnson&Johnson, which shows a higher efficacy rate, have been secured for as early as next week.
Last week, Premier Chupu Mathabatha detailed a rollout plan which was supposed to take effect once the vaccine arrives in Limpopo.
He indicated that pregnant women and children under the age of 18 years have been excluded from the Covid-19 vaccination rollout plan, and added that no person or individual will be forced to be vaccinated.
Limpopo has been allocated 44 526 Covid-19 vaccine doses through the provincial Department of Health.
Mathabatha has reiterated that the vaccine will not be immediately available for everyone and therefore a prioritisation system will be applied.
Priority will be given to those considered to be essential for societal functioning, then those considered to be most at risk of infection and serious outcomes at ages above 60 years with comorbid conditions, after that those living in overcrowded settings and then those who are most at risk of transmitting SARS Cov-2 to others.
To date 39 sites are ready to administer the vaccination process throughout the province as part of its first phase of enrollment for the vaccine, all health workers will be required to complete an online registration. This system will also be part of the consent procedures and risk assessment.
With the current systems put in place, Limpopo has the capacity to vaccinate all the phase 1 population groups within a period of two to three weeks.
Mathabatha has set out guidelines for the distribution of the vaccine that are aimed at interrupting transmission through achievement of the herd immunity and will go a long way in protecting the population against the Coronavirus.
The vaccine rollout strategy will be coordinated by the National Department of Health, in coordination with the provincial department and the private health sector.
As such Mathabatha says Limpopo will introduce the vaccine through a phased approach.
