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COVID19: GPs can vaccinate over 30s with AstraZeneca

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In a bid to speed up its vaccination coverage to 65% of the population with at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, GPs can give people over 30 the AstraZeneca jab.

On Thursday, the Health Ministry announced that GPs had been asked to contribute to vaccinating the population in a race against time.

The Health Ministry said it would provide GPs, who express an interest, with quantities of the AZ vaccine.

“We have already contacted GPs’ representative bodies, who have said that they are willing to take on the task,” Health Ministry spokesperson Margarita Kyriacou told the Financial Mirror.

She explained that GPs have until Tuesday to indicate whether they are on board for the voluntary scheme.

“Those who express interest will be supplied with the necessary quantity of AstraZeneca vaccines,” said Kyriacou.

Only AstraZeneca vaccines will be made available to GPs as the vaccine does not require special conditions of storage or and transport, in contrast with the Pfizer and Moderna jabs, which need to be stored at very low temperatures.

Vaccinations by personal doctors will run alongside vaccination centres and the online portal “to speed up the vaccination process” and achieve herd immunity faster.

The process of getting vaccinated at a GP’s practise is separate from the online vaccination portal, and people can book a vaccination appointment directly with their GP at any time.

Cyprus offers Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna and will start administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the coming days.

AstraZeneca’s demand dropped this month after the European Medicines Agency found possible links to rare cases of blood clots with the jab; Cypriots have shunned choosing the jab.

Until Wednesday, 224,352 vaccinations were administrated (25.5 doses per 100 inhabitants), of which 165,558 (18.8%) were for the first dose of the vaccine and 58,794 (6.7%) for both doses.