Coronavirus: Just 86 people take up Novavax jab

Just 86 people have received the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine after about a month of it having become available in Cyprus, despite initial hopes it would entice some holdouts.

The vaccine, a protein adjuvant vaccine, is based on technology used for decades to protect people from diseases such as hepatitis and shingles.

The government said earlier in the year it would be making some 14,000 doses available.

The health ministry on Friday said that 60 people have so far received their first shot of Novavax while 26 people have received both. The first such jabs were administered on March 12, a date which saw 14 Novavax recipients.

It added that the adult population is now 86.6 per cent “fully vaccinated” while the general population is at 74 per cent.

Specifically, he said, 666,011 people have received their first dose, 642,862 have taken the second, 464,397 the third and 2,591 have taken a fourth shot.

Novavax is administered in two doses to adults with a three-week interval between doses. A total of 15,000 doses will be made available through the vaccination portal, according to a previous announcement.