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Tuesday, 16 February 2021 02:04 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Uditha Jayasinghe
Workers critical to the economy, including airport and port employees, and customs and immigration officials, will be among essential workers who will be vaccinated this week, health officials said yesterday, while ruling out any sweeping lockdowns or fresh COVID-19 guidelines due to the emergence of a new virus variant.
Deputy Director General of Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath yesterday told reporters the Health Ministry has also decided to vaccinate airport employees, customs and immigration officials, and any other stakeholders who may come into contact with travellers.
Colombo Port employees, provincial and local government officials, as well as medical professionals who have not been vaccinated yet, including medical students engaged in clinical work, will also be immunised.
“The emergence of the new UK variant of COVID-19 in Sri Lanka is very serious. We appeal to the public to be extra cautious and avoid any non-essential travel and gatherings. If it is absolutely essential to attend weddings and funerals then please follow all guidelines stringently. The public are also requested to avoid tourists who are holidaying in COVID bubbles around the country,” he added.
State Minister of Primary Healthcare, Epidemics, and COVID Disease Control Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle, yesterday ruled out any sweeping lockdowns due to the discovery of the new virus variant, as the bulk of those infected were found from quarantine centres and not the general public.
“We were able to identify patients with the new variant because we were vigilant about this. We had informed the people about this – that new varieties could emerge in the future. The important thing now is to control that cluster without allowing it to spread. All necessary steps have been taken for that. There is no need to lockdown the country. There is no increase in the number of patients reported. No new guidelines are needed to control the situation. It is sufficient to follow the guidelines already issued,” she told reporters.
Employees selected by the Health Ministry will get the remaining 250,000 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine that was donated to Sri Lanka by India earlier this month. The decision to expand the number of people receiving the vaccine was decided after local officials said there could be a time lag of 12 weeks between the first and second doses, which allowed half the vaccine doses to be given to additional people, COVID-19 prevention task force head General Shavendra Silva told reporters.
“The Government has ordered 18 million doses and we expected delivery of 500,000 doses in another week. Therefore a decision was made to give the doses we have now to more people. Nearly 190,000 people have been vaccinated under the first round.”
The Government has also said that once frontline and essential workers are covered they will begin immunising people above the age of 30 years though more details of that are awaited.
Hundreds of Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) sanitation workers were the first receivers of the COVID-19 vaccine on Monday following a presidential directive for the public to be immunised, with parliamentarians and 5100 prison officials to join the line today.
A total of 550 CMC sanitation workers are to be vaccinated under the new measures. Members of Parliament (MPs) will be given the COVID-19 vaccine at the Army Hospital, parliament officials said, with the vaccination program to continue till Friday.
In addition, 5,100 prison officials will also be vaccinated, Prisons Spokesman Chandana Ekanayake confirmed yesterday, starting from those based in the Western Province. Officials at the Prisons Training College will be immunised today while other prisons will be covered in the coming days.
Prisons officials were listed as vulnerable frontline workers after clusters broke out at several prisons, infecting at least 4,700 inmates and officers. A total of 4,549 have recovered while the remaining 171 inmates and officers are currently receiving treatment.
Meanwhile the Attorney General has approved the Purchase Agreement between the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC) of Sri Lanka and the Serum Institute of India Ltd. for the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines, AG’s Coordinating Officer Nishara Jayaratne said.
She said the agreement has been approved subject to amendments.
