ISLAMABAD, Mar 14 : Parliamentary Secretary of National Health Services Dr Nausheen Hamid Sunday expressed that the government on the recommendation of experts had decided to inoculate Chinese made Sinopharm vaccine to people aged 60 or above due to available data of neighbor countries regarding its efficacy.
she said the Pakistan had launched a nation-wide coronavirus vaccination drive for the general public which was started with older people, adding, Pakistan was vaccinating its older age groups with Chinese-made Sinopharm vaccine after its approval of technical expert committee.
She made it clear that initially Sinopharm vaccine was not recommended for elderly in Pakistan but lately after getting data of other countries such as UAE and China, Pakistani experts has also approved its efficiency and allow it for elderly population.
She said remaining registered health workers from first phase and elderly should send a text message at 1166 or enter their details at the national immunization management system (NIMS) website, adding, the eligible citizens will be informed about the vaccine center and the date of vaccination through a text message.
She said government would give full coverage to both phases of population in second phase of Coronavirus vaccination drive.
Replying to a query, she said public who were directly dealing with public like teachers and police would also prioritize in vaccination drive , adding, its proposal was under consideration of NCOC which hopefully be approve soon.
She also said unfortunately due to no-serious behavior of public overall positivity rate of coronavirus cases were recorded the highest, adding, coronavirus was a reality and the government would implement the guidelines about precautionary measures and save people’s lives at any cost.
She appreciated the media for creating public awareness about the pandemic and said the media should further pursue the people in a more effective way about adopting precautionary measures and implementing the coronavirus-related guidelines.
To another query, she said, “We remain confident that we will meet our plan of large-scale immunization over the coming months this year and AstraZeneca through COVAX platform would also be availible to Pakistan soon”.
