DDC focus vaccines on 70% in Bangkok before provinces

The Department of Disease Control has set an ambitious goal to vaccinate at least 70% of Bangkok residents by July. The department will focus on the capital city and prioritise distribution of vaccines to other provinces based on how severe outbreaks are in the area. The DDC chief commented that the department will focus on Bangkok, speculating that if they can’t control the Covid-19 situation there in the capital city, they won’t be able to control it nationally.

Local vaccine registration for each province will be launched June 14 and residents can sign up for their vaccine via health volunteers, local hospitals, or through a mobile app. Each province has been tasked with developing a Covid-19 vaccine registration application independently to replace the national Mor Prom app that had been opened for vaccine appointment sign-ups at the beginning of the month.

While the government is still waiting for the delivery of AstraZeneca vaccines, provincial public health officers are preparing for the June 7 mass vaccination drive launch date and participated in a teleconference with the DDC to discuss. It was decided that vaccine allocations for each province will now be adjusted weekly instead of monthly.

Outside of Bangkok, the decision on what demographic gets priority vaccine access will be left up to each province to decide, in order to allow flexibility. Provinces with big outbreaks can prioritise residents in the affected area, while provinces with few Covid-19 infections can prioritise vaccines for the elderly and at-risk people in their community.

The DDC plans to have 50 million vaccines available before September, and overall expect to meet PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s goal of 150 million doses of AstraZeneca, Sinovac, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. AstraZeneca is scheduled to send about 36 million jabs between June and September, with the rest currently planned to be from Sinovac.

Next week, the DDC expects to supply 400,000 vaccines for people to receive their second shot, with priority for prison staff, industrial workers, and teachers.

SOURCE: Bangkok Post