First batch of COVID vaccines arrive in Cayman
Cayman Islands Premier, Alden McLaughlin and its Governor, Martyn Roper will be the first to take the COVID-19 shots when the territory starts administering the first batch of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines on Thursday.
The vaccines were supplied by the UK free of charge.
Cayman received 9,750 doses of the vaccine on Tuesday — enough to inoculate 4,875 people, The Cayman Compass reported.
While taking the vaccine is voluntary, Governor Roper encouraged residents to get their shots, adding that it will determine whether Cayman receives more supplies.
“If we can show this can be made to work and we can roll vaccines out successfully over the next few days. I am confident that we can get another batch of vaccines, either on the next flight or the one after that. This vaccine really is our way out of this pandemic,” Roper said.
Unlike the UK, Cayman health officials have said they will be administering the second dose after 21 days as stipulated by Pfizer for maximum efficacy.
The UK has pushed back administering the second dose of the vaccine from three weeks after the first inoculation, to 12 weeks to give more people the initial shot.
Meanwhile, it is still unclear how many viles the BVI will receive in the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines it is set to receive from the UK.
By February, the BVI is set to receive the AstraZeneca vaccines, produced by Oxford University.
The Health Ministry will work closely with Public Health England, the Caribbean Public Health Agency, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), and the World Health Organization (WHO) on a national programme to make the vaccine available to residents on a purely voluntary basis.
Cayman received 9,750 doses of the vaccine on Tuesday — enough to inoculate 4,875 people, The Cayman Compass reported.
While taking the vaccine is voluntary, Governor Roper encouraged residents to get their shots, adding that it will determine whether Cayman receives more supplies.
“If we can show this can be made to work and we can roll vaccines out successfully over the next few days. I am confident that we can get another batch of vaccines, either on the next flight or the one after that. This vaccine really is our way out of this pandemic,” Roper said.
Unlike the UK, Cayman health officials have said they will be administering the second dose after 21 days as stipulated by Pfizer for maximum efficacy.
The UK has pushed back administering the second dose of the vaccine from three weeks after the first inoculation, to 12 weeks to give more people the initial shot.
Meanwhile, it is still unclear how many viles the BVI will receive in the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines it is set to receive from the UK.
By February, the BVI is set to receive the AstraZeneca vaccines, produced by Oxford University.
The Health Ministry will work closely with Public Health England, the Caribbean Public Health Agency, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), and the World Health Organization (WHO) on a national programme to make the vaccine available to residents on a purely voluntary basis.
