The Singapore government on Wednesday began importing people in the city with the COfID-19 Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the first country in Asia to do so.
As planned earlier, the Ministry of Health said health care workers received the first shots at the National Center for Infectious Diseases Wednesday morning, with the first being Sarah Lim, 46, chief nurse of personnel staff who screen for suspected coronavirus infections at the center.
More than 30 NCID workers were expected to be vaccinated today.
After health care workers, other frontline and elderly workers are expected to follow the next line, and the rest of the population will be followed, the government said.
“We aim to complete our coverage by the end of next year,” Health Minister Gan Kim Yong told reporters during a visit to the NCID earlier in the day.
The government has said the vaccines will be available free of charge to everyone who meets the minimum age requirements in its population of 5.7 million, including permanent residents and keepers. long-term pass, but admission will be voluntary.
“While vaccinations will remain voluntary, we want to strongly encourage Singaporean vaccination,” Gan said.
Singapore received the first batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on December 21, becoming the first country in Asia to receive the pictures.
The government has also entered into contracts with American biotechnology company Moderna and China Sinovac to purchase their vaccines, government officials said.
Singapore this week entered the third phase of its plans to gradually lift the restrictions it imposed in a semi-lock that began in April this year to prevent the spread of its virus, including an increase in the number of people allowed to eat together from just five. to eight and for 250 people to gather at places of worship.
Singapore has reported just over 58,000 cases of coronavirus infection and 29 deaths.
