[ad_1]
BRUSSELS, Dec.28 (Xinhua) – Around Sunday, several European countries launched vaccination against COVID-19 as the first batch of vaccines was distributed to member states of the European Union (EU), in the hope of overcoming the virus.
“Today all Greeks are smiling behind our masks. The vaccine is the only way to get out of this COVID adventure definitively, ”said Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who, along with President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, was among the first Greeks to be vaccinated against COVID-19 on Sunday.
Greece received 9,750 doses of the vaccine on Christmas Day and began the vaccination campaign on Sunday. Healthcare professionals and the elderly will be the first to get vaccinated in the country in the coming weeks.
In line with other EU countries, Germany also launched its nationwide mass COVID-19 vaccination on Sunday, and the country’s first batch of vaccines will prioritize people over 80. years in nursing homes, as well as front-line medical and nursing staff.
The vaccine currently used in Germany was developed jointly by the German company BioNTech and the American company Pfizer. The country is expected to receive between 3 and 4 million doses of the vaccine by the end of January next year.
Sweden, which also rolled out its vaccination program the same day, announced that residents of nursing homes and elderly people receiving care at home, mainly those aged 70 and over, should be the first to get it. vaccinate.
Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven congratulated a 91-year-old nursing home resident who became the first to be vaccinated against COVID-19 on Sunday morning. “It’s a big day, a moment of light after a dark year. We really want to thank you,” Lofven said.
The first doses delivered to Sweden will cover a total of 4,900 people nationwide, Swedish authorities said, adding that an additional 80,000 doses will be delivered to Sweden per week from Monday and the plan is to vaccinate all adults in here mid-June.
Poland, which has received a shipment of 10,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, also plans to vaccinate frontline medical workers first.
Similar situations have also taken place in Croatia, Cyprus, Lithuania, Portugal and other countries.
Mass vaccination against COVID-19 is the result of a joint effort by the scientific community and several vaccinated people have expressed confidence in the science.
“I am absolutely calm, confident, optimistic and full of hope. I was called to do it and I did it with confidence,” said Antonio Sarmento, the first Portuguese to be vaccinated.
Ana Isabel Ribeiro, nurse in Portugal, said healthcare professionals “now feel protected because it has been the most difficult year of our career. I think it is a hope for us to continue our work in this fight against COVID-19 “. Enditem
Source link
