Influenza and Covid-19 vaccinations will begin “compulsorily” on September 29, the chief executive of the National Health Service (NHS) said on Tuesday.
“The scenario we are looking at is September 29 to start [com a vacinação contra a gripe e a covid-19] with strength and great support from the Portuguese,” said Fernando Araujo at the 2nd World Health Organization (WHO) Digital Future Symposium in Porto.
The official, accompanied by the Minister of Health, suggested that the vaccination would be “something difficult” because it would involve a very wide range of structures in the Ministry of Health.
Vaccination against Covid-19 will take place in health centers at the same time as influenza, as happened in 2022.
New this year is that for the first time, the Covid-19 vaccine can be administered in public pharmacies that have a vaccine administration service, have specialists who have received special training in the use of vaccines and are willing to participate in vaccination. , according to a ruling published on August 17 in the newspaper Diário da República.
These pharmacies will be able to stay open longer and the membership list will be available on the websites of the National Health Service, Directorate General of Health (DGS) and Infarmed.
According to the decree, the DGS will now issue technical instructions governing the vaccination process, namely the definition of vaccination criteria and eligible users.
Covid-19 is a respiratory disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, a type of virus discovered in late 2019 in China and rapidly spreading around the world, taking on several variants and subvariants, some more contagious than others.
The disease was classified as a pandemic on 11 March 2020 and ceased to be an international public health emergency in May 2023.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.