“Portugal has already administered more than 800 thousand booster and additional doses of the vaccine against covid-19 and approximately 1,608,000 of vaccines against the flu were administered, of which about 398,000 in pharmacies”, reads a statement from the DGS today disclosed.

The document adds that on Monday “it was possible to vaccinate 43,695 people with a booster dose of the vaccine against covid-19 and 43,429 against the flu (5,730 of which in pharmacies)” and that “these numbers are possible due to the acceleration of the daily vaccination at vaccination centers, including at the weekend, through the `Open House` modality”.

The DGS recalls that the `Open House` is open for a week for people aged 75 years and over and recommends that users who want it use the opening hours of the vaccination center in their area of ​​residence.

“Local scheduling is also available for qualified users, with priority being given to older people and gradually covering younger age groups, until reaching 65 years”, referred the note from the DGS.

In addition to SMS calls for simultaneous vaccination against flu and covid-19, or just for flu, if you are not first eligible for the booster dose, self-scheduling is also available for those aged 65 or over, via the address https: //covid19.min-saude.pt/request-de-schedule/.

“For the same booster dose, they are qualified as people aged 65 or over, as long as they have had the complete vaccination schedule for at least 150 days and, if they have had an influence, that it has occurred for more than 150 days. people over the age of 18 and up to 65 who have been given the Janssen vaccine for more than three months,” recalls DGS.

At a time when a decision from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is awaited regarding the vaccination of children from the age of five, the Portuguese Society of Pediatrics came today to say that vaccines are safe for children, even if emphasize that the decision to vaccinate must take into account factors such as the prevalence of the infection in children.

The Government, which is today receiving the parties regarding measures to restrict the growth of the pandemic that must be approved at the Council of Ministers next Thursday, has already told the parties that, for the time being, there are no plans to vaccinate children and that the priority is the elders.