Health officials concerned about the dip in vaccination rate

By Khatia Bzhalava

Tuesday, September 21

According to Georgian Deputy Health Minister Tamar Gabunia, 7,720 individuals have received the coronavirus vaccine around the country on Sunday, which is the lowest figure since July.

The upcoming programs of the USAID will focus on vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations.

Deputy Minister of Health, Tamar Gabunia announced yesterday that the rate of vaccination has decreased in recent days. According to her, the situation is alarming and indicates that there is a serious need to further boost the vaccination program by expanding the information campaign.

Amid the slowdown, the capital is leading in terms of vaccination as more than 60% of the adult population is already vaccinated, however, the same statistics are not observed in other regions of Georgia. Vaccination in the country is voluntary and, according to Gabunia, no other model is being considered so far.

It was announced on September 17 that The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will allocate USD 5,4 million as additional assistance to Georgia to fight against Covid-19. In partnership with the Zinc Network, USAID will develop a series of public service announcements that will bust vaccine myths, inform the public about the benefits of getting the vaccine shot, and share fact-based information about vaccines.

According to the USAID, additional programs and international partners will facilitate increased access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines and further strengthen the Georgian people’s ability to manage the cases of COVID-19. As USAID noted, the main focus will be on vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations.

Deputy Minister of Health also touched upon the easing of restrictions in the education sector and stated that in-person learning would resume on October 4 if the epidemiological situation stabilizes until then. According to her, NCDC and the Ministry of Education are preparing additional proposals regarding the safe opening of schools.

Georgia reported 662 new cases of coronavirus, 3,534 recoveries, and 34 deaths On Monday. Currently, 23,795 patients remain infected with Covid-19. In total, 563,530 of the 595,926 patients have recovered, while 8,575 have deceased.