24 million vaccine doses to be procured in October
The Department of Disease Control on Saturday unveiled its plan to procure and allocate 24 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine in October this year.
They will comprise 6 million doses of Sinovac, 10 million doses of AstraZeneca and 8 million doses of Pfizer, department director-general Dr Opas Karnkawinpong said.
"Separately, the Chulabhorn Royal Academy will procure approximately 6 million doses of Sinopharm vaccine in October," he added.
He explained that the 24 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines will be allocated as follows:
- 16.8 million will be administered to people aged 18 years and above.
- 4.8 million doses of Pfizer vaccine to children aged between 12-17 years
- 0.8 million doses to workers under the social security system.
- 1.1 million doses to people in agencies, such as state enterprises and prisons.
- 0.5 million doses to people who had already received two Sinovac jabs.
"According to the vaccination plan approved by the Cabinet, 50-70 per cent of people in all provinces would be vaccinated in October, covering the elderly, people with chronic diseases, pregnant women and other groups of people," he said.
He said the vaccination drive on children aged 12 years and above will kick off in October as preparation for the opening of a new semester.
He added that people who had already received two Sinovac jabs will receive a booster shot in October as they would be at risk of Covid-19 infection due to a decline in immunity.
"We believe that the situation will gradually improve, so we would like to ask people to follow universal prevention methods and receive their Covid-19 jab," he added.