THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Vaccination begins for vulnerable groups and their caretakers

Vaccination begins for vulnerable groups and their caretakers

The Public Health Ministry has started providing Covid-19 vaccine to people in vulnerable groups at Sirindhorn National Medical Rehabilitation Institute in Nonthaburi province.

“In the pilot phase, we expect to vaccinate 500 people who are visually impaired and aged over 60 years or having underlying health problems, along with their caretakers,” Deputy Health Minister Satit Pituthecha said on Friday.

“Sixty registered candidates will be invited to the vaccination unit per day starting from Thursday until the inoculation target is reached.”

Vaccination begins for vulnerable groups and their caretakers

Satit said the ministry had told the Department of Mental Health to provide vaccination to people who have mental issues, such as autism, Down Syndrome, attention deficit disorder, as well as their family members or caretakers who live in the same residence, starting from Saturday.

“The vaccine will be provided at Rajanukul Institute in Bangkok's Din Daeng district. Eligible people must reside in Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan or Pathum Thani provinces and be aged over 18 years,” he added.

Vaccination begins for vulnerable groups and their caretakers

“The ministry will soon provide vaccine to people with other kinds of disabilities who live in other provinces to make sure that people in vulnerable groups are safe from Covid-19,” said Satit.

Statistics from the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security indicated that as of March 31, over 2.09 million people with disabilities had registered with the ministry, or 3.21 per cent of total population. Of these, 49.8 per cent have movement disability, while 18.8 per cent are hearing impaired and 9.1 per cent are visually impaired.

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