Doctors disappointed at low target of COVID-19 vaccination

Malta’s doctors association has said it is disappointed at the very low targets for COVID-19 vaccination declared by the health authorities, saying it “alarmingly reveals mathematical predictions which are completely wrong”.

Malta has procured 500,000 doses from Pfizer of their COVID-19 vaccine, as well as 100,000 doses from Moderna, and 1 million doses from AstraZeneca.

“The vast majority of healthcare professionals are feeling let down as to date only approximately one out of ten has received the first dose of the vaccine, especially when is public knowledge that the government has in its freezers many more vaccines than front-liners and about 19,000 vaccines remain idle in the freezers. Clearly, with proper organisation, all healthcare professionals may receive both doses in the next four weeks,” Medical Association of Malta president Martin Balzan said.

Balzan said the authorities should aim at vaccinating the whole population as fast as possible so as to make everybody safe and to kick start economic recovery as soon as possible.

“Most alarming was the figure published in The Times, quoting that the health authorities aim to provide only 5,000 vaccinations per week, meaning that vaccination of the Maltese population would take more than three years.”

MAM said the government could give 342 doses every day, on weekends and public holidays, to vaccinate some 6,000 front-liners within five weeks.

At a rate of 5,333 doses per day, it could vaccinate the entire Maltese population in five months, excluding children.

“MAM is making its calculations public and invites the health authorities to mobilise its own health care workers to get Malta out of this crisis as soon as possible. Vaccination rates should only be limited by outside factors affecting supply and not by local inefficiencies in organisation,” Balzan said, who added that for Malta to achieve herd immunity with 70% vaccination it should require 3,733 vaccinations every day.