The coronavirus vaccination campaign begins in Uruguay: priority for teachers and security forces

Uruguay starts this Monday on COVID-19 vaccination campaign, with an emphasis on essential personnel such as teachers and security forces. It is the last country in South America to launch the process.

Although some vaccinators were vaccinated over the weekend, the official start of the vaccination program is March 1, with doses received from the Sinovac Formula (China). Authorities have confirmed that they have recorded 20 thousand people for this day, and nearly 50 thousand until Wednesday, when it would already exceed 1% of the population of nearly 3.5 million. This Monday, moreover, the quotas to be vaccinated are open from Thursday.

In this first case, the teachers, police, firefighters and servicemen, and workers at the Institute for Children and Adolescents of Uruguay (INAU) under 60, that from Friday, they could register in an agenda authorized by the MSP.

On the other hand, from March 8, date stipulated for the arrival of the first batch of vaccines from the American laboratory Pfizer, will be vaccinated personal health. In the event that the arrival of these doses would be delayed due to a certain setback, the health sector would still start to be inoculated on that date with the Chinese vials.

As announced on February 22 by the President of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle PouFrom March 15, 1,558,000 additional doses of Sinovac will arrive and between March 8 and April 26, approximately 460,000 from Pfizer. A few days ago, on the date of his own inoculation, he predicted: “When it touches me, I vaccinate with the one who touches me”.

The president warned that there will be “a fluid and continuous process” of vaccination, because “there will be no downtime” between the arrivals of those already announced and those which complete the purchase made by Uruguay of 3.8 million doses – between Pfizer and Sinovac – and the $ 1.5 million reserve of the Covax platform, created by the World Health Organization (WHO) for distribution among the least privileged countries.

Uruguay records 56,542 infections (6,929 active, including 67 in intensive care) and 601 deaths.

Over the weekend, around 900 vaccination center workers have already been vaccinated, including nurses and assistants. One of the first to receive the injection was Erika Correa, vaccinator of the Uruguayan medical mutual, who, after the corresponding process was completed, spoke to the press. There he stressed that the experience was “barbaric” and pointed out the strengths of the Sinovac formula. “It’s a normal vaccine like the one we’re used to getting from the Uruguayan program,” Correa said. In addition, he invited the population to receive the said vaccine “with confidence” and stressed that in the country “we buy quality vaccines” which generate “total confidence”.

For her part, Jaqueline Zorrilla, technical director of the Vaccination area of ​​the Casmu mutual, underlined that during the day “all the vaccination processes” were adjusted so that the inoculation was “safe, efficient and effective”.

For the moment, the closure of borders to the rule of tourism in Uruguay (Only Uruguayans and residents can enter, in addition to exceptions for economic, diplomatic or personal matters, with the prior authorization of the executive power) and the bars and restaurants open until 2 a.m. (Although in Montevideo it is midnight by order of the local government).

In addition, last Friday, the 30-day extension of the law approved by the Uruguayan Parliament and promulgated on December 21, which allows the right of assembly to be restricted “for reasons of public health”.

(With information from EFE)

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