Ministry of Health reviews Covid-19 vaccination rate, who is recommended to get vaccinated?

Who needs to get vaccinated against Covid-19?

According to the Covid-19 vaccination guidance document of the Ministry of Health recently sent to the health departments of provinces and centrally run cities; the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Pasteur Institute, the current Covid-19 epidemic situation in the world is unpredictable and difficult to predict with new sub-variants continuing to be recorded.

In November 2023, the World Health Organization in Vietnam issued updated recommendations on priority groups for Covid-19 vaccination in the coming time.

To enhance immunity against Covid-19, especially in high-risk groups, based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization's strategic advisory group on immunization and the Ministry of Health's Vaccine Advisory Council, the Ministry of Health continues to provide guidance on Covid-19 vaccination.

Subjects eligible for Covid-19 vaccination include: medical staff; people over 50 years old, people with underlying medical conditions; people over 18 years old who have not received any vaccinations; pregnant women.

Regarding the injection dose, according to the Ministry of Health's instructions, those who have not been vaccinated will be vaccinated with 1 dose immediately. Those who have been vaccinated will be vaccinated with 1 more dose at least 6 months after the previous dose with a vaccine licensed for use by the Ministry of Health.

For pregnant women, inject 1 dose during each pregnancy and inject at any stage of pregnancy, preferably in the middle stage of pregnancy.

The Ministry of Health requested units to review the vaccination rate in the area and the subjects that need to be vaccinated according to the instructions to study and propose the need for Covid-19 vaccines in the coming time and send them to the Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology for timely supply and organize vaccination according to the local plan.

Is Covid-19 vaccination free?

To date, our country has administered more than 266.5 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine.

Vietnam is one of the countries with the highest Covid-19 vaccine coverage rate in the world, with the basic vaccination rate for people aged 12 and over reaching nearly 100%, and the fourth vaccination rate for people aged 18 and over at high risk reaching 89.6%.

From October 2023, the Ministry of Health has decided to adjust the classification of Covid-19 from group A infectious diseases to group B infectious diseases. Therefore, many people ask, will Covid-19 vaccination be free as when this disease was in group A?

Answering this question, talking to Giao Thong Newspaper reporter, Mr. Pham Quang Thai, Head of the Northern Vaccination Office, Central Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology said: "Although it has been transferred to group B, according to the external vaccine support program, Covid-19 vaccinations are still being done for free."

Currently, Covid-19 is being controlled and managed sustainably, in which vaccination is one of the tasks and solutions in the 2023-2025 period.

In early May, a Covid-19 variant called KP.2 spread rapidly in the US, UK and Canada, and is believed to be more immune evasive than any previous variant.

In Vietnam, the most recent variant recorded and recommended for monitoring by the health sector is JN.1. This is a variant of concern according to the classification of the World Health Organization.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/bo-y-te-ra-soat-ty-le-tiem-chung-vaccine-covid-19-ai-duoc-khuyen-cao-can-tiem-192240514111259401.htm