Coronavirus: Over 50 per cent of over 80s received or booked slot for first vaccine

Over 50 per cent of people over 80 have either received their first Covid-19 vaccine or are scheduled to receive it, senior health official Olga Kalakouta said on Monday.

According to Kalakouta, around 33,000 people in Cyprus fall within the category and, up to now, more than 12,000 have been given the Pfizer vaccine. The remaining amount necessary to reach 50 per cent have their appointments scheduled and confirmed.

“If everything goes according to plan, we will vaccinate all people over 80 years of age by mid-February, before starting vaccinating people aged 75 and above,” she said.

“All available vaccines are given immediately, through appointments. We only keep the ones destined for people receiving the second jab.”

An additional 3,510 doses of Pfizer vaccines are expected to arrive in Cyprus by Monday afternoon.

Kalakouta added that, so far, no one in Cyprus has suffered side effects after having been administered the vaccine.

“Everything is going smoothly, we haven’t encountered any problems.”

As regards the investigation carried out in Norway, where the death of 23 people occurred after they were given the vaccine, Kalakouta said that she has not received any official information on the matter.

Finally, she said she was satisfied with the population’s response to the vaccination plan.

“People’s will to get vaccinated proves their determination to protect their own and everybody else’s health, which will prove decisive in putting an end to the ongoing health crisis.”