Healthcare Workers, People Aged Above 65 Years Will Be Given COVID Vaccine On Priority: Dr. Harsh Vardhan

New Delhi: Noting that it is natural to prioritise the COVID-19 vaccine distribution process, Health minister Harsh Vardhan on Thursday said healthcare workers and people aged above 65 years will be given coronavirus vaccine on priority. Addressing the FICCI FLO’s National Webinar on ‘The Shifting Healthcare Paradigm During and Post-COVID’, Dr. Vardhan said coronavirus vaccine will be available in a couple of months and it is estimated that by July-August, 400-500 million vaccine doses will be made available for 25-30 crore people. “I am confident that the COVID-19 vaccine will be ready in the next three-four months,” he said.

Also Read: Protein-Based COVID-19 Vaccine Candidates More Suitable For India, Scientists Say

Dr. Vardhan said that everything is being decided by experts with a scientific point of view. He said,

It is natural that the vaccine distribution would have to be prioritised. As you know the healthcare workers who are corona warriors will be prioritised, then people who are above 65 years of age, they have been prioritised and then those from 50-65 years of age have been prioritised. Then those below 50 years who have other diseases. We have made a very detailed meticulous plan on this. What we would have to do in March-April next year, we have started planning for it from now only. We have also initiated an integrated response system against COVID-19 and will also host clinical trials for all the major vaccines. About 20 vaccines are in different stages of development.

He said about 90-99 per cent tackling of COVID-19 is only through protecting and motivating others.

You can protect yourself from this deadly virus with small precautions like wearing a good quality mask properly, maintaining social distance and taking care of hand-hygiene, he noted.

The phase-3 trial of the Oxford vaccine of the Serum Institute is almost near completion, while the phase-3 clinical trial of the indigenously-developed vaccine candidate of the Bharat Biotech and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has already started. Dr Reddy’s Laboratories will also soon start the combined phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine, Sputnik V, in India. Also, the Biological E Limited has started early phase 1 and 2 human trials of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate. Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE have said their vaccine candidate was found to be more than 95 per cent effective in preventing COVID-19. Moderna had on Monday said the independent National Institutes of Health-appointed Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) for the Phase 3 study of mRNA-1273, its vaccine candidate against COVID-19, found it to have an efficacy of 94.5 per cent.

Also Read: India’s Serum Institute Says Made 40 Million Doses Of AstraZeneca’s COVID Vaccine, To Make Novavax Shot Soon

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.