Portugal has just unveiled the approximate schedule and the different priority groups for the covid-19 vaccination campaign. The vaccine will begin to be administered in early January and in the worst-case scenario, it may take four months to vaccinate the first priority group, with nearly a million Portuguese. The logistics plan remains to be defined and will be a challenge for Portugal. Lisbob, the expatriate assistant, tells you all about the priority groups and the dates of the vaccination phases in Portugal.
Covid-19: Find out the priority groups and the dates of the vaccination phases in Portugal - Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich from Pexels
The chairman of the task force created by the Portuguese government to define the covid-19 vaccination plan Francisco Ramos presented this Thursday, December 3, the first details of the vaccination process which will begin in January 2021. The vaccine will not be mandatory.
Here are the main details, which were put forward this afternoon by the former Secretary of State for Health who heads the coordination group of this plan which also includes elements of the general directorate of health, the armed forces and ministries of defense and the interior, with technical support from several structures.
First phase of vaccination (January-March / April):
- People aged 50 or over, with at least one of the following pathologies: heart failure, coronary artery disease, renal failure and chronic respiratory disease with ventilatory assistance (400,000 people)
- Residents at home and hospitalized in continuing care units, and their professionals (250,000 people)
- Health professionals directly involved in the provision of care and the staff of the armed forces and security forces - considered essential and critical services, the list of which remains to be refined (300,000 people)
Second phase of vaccination (from the second trimester):
- 65 years and over, with or without pathologies (1.8 million people)
- Group between 50 and 74 years old, with extension of pre-existing pathologies, such as diabetes, active malignancy, chronic renal failure, hepatic failure, obesity and arterial hypertension. (900,000 people)
Third phase of vaccination (to be confirmed):
- Rest of the population, if the expected rate of vaccine supply is confirmed. If for some reason this pace is much slower than the current baseline scenario, authorities will need to create a third priority group.
Regarding the planned schedule, Francisco Ramos admits "that there are still many uncertainties", but assures that "in January 2021 the vaccination of the Portuguese will begin, as in the rest of Europe". However, the Executive Advisory Group is still unable to define the exact day.
In an optimistic scenario in terms of abstention from the vaccine, the first phase of vaccination runs through January and February. In the medium scenario, the first trimester may be necessary. In the worst-case scenario considered by specialists, it may take four months to vaccinate this first priority group with nearly a million Portuguese.
Those selected for the second phase should not start to be vaccinated until the second trimester. At the moment it is therefore impossible to say when Portugal will be able to return to normalcy, and whether a biological passport will be necessary to ensure that the vaccine is taken.
