Covid-19. Adherence to vaccination in Portugal makes mandatory
The Directorate-General of Health announced this afternoon that 1,530,075 people had received a booster dose against Covid-19. Of these, 62,723 were vaccinated on Saturday and 3,749 completed the primary course, for a total of 8,595,904 vaccines administered against Covid-19.
“AN The goal and commitment that the Government had with the Portuguese to vaccinate 1.5 million people by the 19th (December) was reached yesterday. Congratulations to the Portuguese because they set a great example of citizenship”, commented the Deputy Secretary of State and Health, after visiting the Leiria vaccination center.
The fact that a vaccination target was triggered two weeks ahead of time will have an impact on the health system after Christmas, the secretary of state noted. “Because we reached the target of 1.5 million people (vaccinated) 14 days before the deadline we had committed to, this pillow allows us to vaccinate by Christmas more people within the eligible rangess “and thus ensure “as little impact as possible at Christmas time, when families come together, and also the least possible impact on health services, commented António Lacerda Sales.
This Sunday, people over 50 who have been given the Janssen vaccine will also receive a second dose to boost their immunity against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
Adaptation makes obligatory unnecessary
The Deputy Secretary of State and Health also considers that “there is nothing to make mandatory” if adherence to vaccination against a Covid-19 remains, highlighting that the Portuguese adhere “historically and culturally” to vaccination.
“In my perspective, I think that if we continue with the example of citizenship that we are seeing here today, with the example of citizenship that we have seen in the Portuguese over these months of vaccination, I think there is nothing to make mandatory, because the Portuguese adhere to these awareness messages by themselves”, he said.
The President of the Republic said, this Sunday, that in view of “such a large” adhesion, “the question is not raised in Portugal” of making vaccination mandatory. A position that António Lacerda Vendas refuses to comment on, arguing that he is neither a jurist nor a constitutionalist.
“I am happy to know that the vaccination of tens of thousands of Portuguese is planned today and that adherence is so great that the issue of mandatory vaccination does not arise in Portugal. The Portuguese understand that they should be vaccinated, without the need for mandatory vaccination, “said Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
However, “the Portuguese have a very strong culture of awareness of vaccination and it is historic, it is not new“.” We have a vaccination plan with more than 97.98 percent coverage. Therefore, the Portuguese are used to adhering to vaccination, they adhere to vaccination historically and culturally”, he noted.
Lacerda Sales also said he expects “there will be a great adhesion from the children’s parents”, if the Directorate-General of Health decides to vaccinate children under 12, following the opinion of the Technical Commission on Vaccination.
“I also hope that there is great adherence on the part of the children’s parents, because we are talking about children still without autonomy to be able to decide”, he pointed out, stressing that the vaccination “is done safely and is effective, that’s what it is important “.
Despite vaccination, number of deaths increases
in the last 24 hours 23 deaths were recorded, a number higher than yesterday. Admissions are also on the rise. 3,786 infections were also registered. “a growing trend“What worries the Assistant Secretary of State for Health.
“We are, of course, very concerned. We are at an incidence rate of 374 per 100,000 population at 14 days. We have a transmissibility rate of 1.13, therefore still higher than 1. And of course this worries us as we have a trend growing”, admits António Lacerda Sales.
For the ruler, the solution is to speed up vaccination, strengthen testing and “border control, with mandatory testing on arrival“
“All hospitals and all health services were asked for contingency plans” and that “as bank stopovers were assured“added Lacerda Sales.” Occasionally, there is another hospital that still needs to be able to cover another scale, but this is perfectly normal in the National Health Service, “he said, ensuring that the vast majority of hospitals have closed the scales by the end of the year.
Asked whether there will be enough human resources at the hospitals for Christmas and New Year, António Lacerda Sales noted that “human resources are always very demanding”. “There will always be a lack of health professionals in some places.“, he noted, but guarantees that” cases, we are here to hire, to continue to hire, to make up for these shortages “.
Covid-19 has caused at least 5,249,851 deaths worldwide, among more than 264.78 million infections by the new coronavirus registered since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the most recent report by the Agence France-Presse.
In Portugal, since March 2020, 18,537 people have died and 1,166,787 cases of infection have been recorded, according to data from the General Directorate of Health.
C / Portuguese