Health officials call on people to get COVID-19 booster doses

State employees and workers receive COVID-19 booster shots after the launching ceremony. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam is at risk of COVID-19resurgence if people don’t get booster shots and local authorities staynegligent and fail to accelerate vaccine advocacy, Deputy Minister of HealthNguyen Thi Lien Huong told a Hanoi ceremony on July 5.

The event was held by the Vietnam General Confederationof Labour (VGCL) and the Health Ministry to launch the rollout of the third andfourth vaccine doses for state employees and workers nationwide.

Huong said as of July 4, more than 233 million COVID-19vaccine doses had been administered in Vietnam, raising the primary vaccinationcoverage among people aged 12 and above to approximately 100%.

Amidst the global uncertainties brought on by the pandemicand the current virus re-emergence in several countries, Vietnam continues detectinginfections of new variants and is facing the risk of new outbreaks, she noted.

Photo: VNA

With people and organisations lowering guard against thevirus, many cities and provinces have not been making fast enough progress ininjecting boosters, the deputy minister noted, adding that the percentage ofpeople aged 18 and more receiving the third and fourth doses only reached about67% and 31%, respectively.

Vaccination is the most effective tool against coronavirus, sheemphasised, urging all state employees and workers to have boosters inoculated onschedule.

Over the last two months (from April 26 – June 24), Vietnamreported 130,462 new cases of COVID-19 and 63 related deaths. Daily caseloaddeclined to below 700, the lowest in 12 months./.

VNA