The health ministry will investigate complaints that people in non-priority groups jumped the queue for vaccinations, minister Constantinos Ioannou said on Friday.
The statement follows complaints by organised patients, among others, that instead of people in high-risk groups been given priority, some healthcare professionals but also others who are non-eligible at this stage, were able to get vaccinated “through lies and interventions”.
Both Ioannou and deputy head of the state medical and public health service, Olga Kalakouta, said on Friday that there have been attempted interventions but that as far as the health ministry is concerned, they themselves are playing by the book.
However, on the first day of vaccinations at Famagusta hospital, the ministry’s permanent secretary Christina Yiannaki was vaccinated in front of TV cameras and also spoke to reporters afterwards. It later emerged that not even the health minister knew of her plan, finding out from the media later.
Ioannou, replying to a question after announcing the new measures against the spread of coronavirus, said that when the vaccines arrived, during the first phase of vaccinations, public and private hospitals and nursing homes were asked to provide lists of people healthcare workers in the frontline.
He said that if some hospitals gave the names of doctors non-eligible it will be assessed and actions will be taken.
Kalakouta too, told state broadcaster CyBC, that a few days ago, when a mobile vaccination crew went to a nursing home to vaccinate people there, some 16 members of the foundation’s board showed up asking to get vaccinated but were turned away.
Associate Professor of the Pharmacy Programme at the University of Nicosia, Dr Christos Petrou told CyBC that, some nursing homes had added to their lists people not in the frontline, adding, however, that vaccination crews are not police officers to check who is who at the nursing homes and hospitals.
“Managements ought to consider their social responsibility and that there are people who are truly high-risk and that every vaccine deprived from a high-risk person, puts this person’s life in danger but also the health system,” he said.
The federation of patients’ associations (Osak) sent Ioannou a letter referring to this issue but also to the importance of some high-risk groups of patients getting vaccinated with the jabs using the mRNA technology (Pfizer and Moderna) expressing concerns that they will run out by the time it is their turn.
Head of Osak, Marios Kouloumas told CyBC that in their letter, they are calling for the immediate vaccination of immunosuppressed people with the Pfizer vaccine, citing studies that the mRNA technology is more efficient for their case than other vaccines.
They also pointed out that the number of these vaccines is limited and that there have been reports that people not in vulnerable groups have been jumping the line.
“We want everyone to be vaccinated but there must be a programme so that the people in high-risk group are vaccinated first,” Kouloumas told CyBC. “We need the mRNA technology to have the highest benefit,” he said, adding that if patients in high risks groups receive other vaccines, the benefit might not be as high for them. Only the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines use mRNA technology. The remainder use the standard inoculation method.
“The plans must be based on the maximum benefit for the people and not just to vaccinate people,” Kouloumas said.
Petrou, said Osak’s position was a valid one.
Though there is not much bibliography on this yet, he said, “this vaccine seems to be better for these people since their immune system is deactivated which means its response will be very slow or much lower.”
He said that immunocompromised and chronic illness patients ought to be prioritised based on their condition.
Ioannou’s statements later in the day, though unintendedly, backed this argument.
The minister, replying to a question, said that even though it was necessary to vaccinate around 70 per cent of the population to achieve immunity, if only 20 per cent of the vulnerable groups were vaccinated – the elderly and patients’ groups – according to research it would lead to a drop in hospital admissions by 80 per cent.
Reducing the numbers of hospitalisations, that have been soaring in the last few days, is a must for the government.
Though the number of hospitalisations of people with coronavirus on Thursday evening was 196, the number rose to 200 by Friday morning.
Kouloumas also questioned that some 730 private doctors who have been vaccinated so far, as per a health ministry announcement, were indeed in the frontline.
This stirred reactions by the medical association (CyMA) that said in a written statement later in the day that all doctors are a single line of dealing with coronavirus and discrimination is unfortunate.
“Every doctor who examines emergencies in their office is an active frontline doctor,” CyMA said. It also reiterated its call to the health ministry to make sure all doctors are promptly vaccinated, without discrimination. “Without healthy doctors we cannot tackle the pandemic, especially at a time when it is spreading rapidly.”
In the meantime, the employers and industrialists’ federation (OEB) called for the purchase of vaccines also from Russia and China citing devastating consequences for the economy if the return to normality is delayed.
Ioannou said vaccines from third countries cannot be used since Cyprus, as an EU member, is obliged to use vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
The minister said that 4,500 people have been vaccinated so far, which by population percentage, puts Cyprus among the three top EU countries as regards vaccine coverage.
He said that Cyprus receives 6,800 doses per week from Pfizer, while another 16,000 are expected by Moderna within the next 30 days. Moderna was just approved by the EU on Wednesday.
“If no other vaccine is approved in the meantime, by the end of February, around 60,000 to 70,000 people can be vaccinated,” Ioannou said.
“If we reach 150,000 people, I hope by mid-April, we will be in a position to reduce hospital admissions,” he said. He added that Cyprus was the first country in the EU to start vaccinations for people over 80, as other countries are still vaccinating hospital staff.
Ioannou also said that Astra Zeneca was expected to file its application to EMA on Monday meaning that, if approved, tens of thousands of doses will be arriving each month. He said that of all goes according to plan, “we hope that by May we can lift the measures.”
