COVID19: Cyprus vaccinates 31.9%, portal crashes again

Cyprus has vaccinated 31.9% of people with the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, but its rollout plans came unstuck Thursday after the online booking portal suffered technical trouble once more.

“Due to a technical problem, the Covid19 Vaccination Portal has been temporarily shut down. In cooperation with the contractor company, the ministry is working intensively for the immediate solution of this problem,” an Innovation Ministry statement said.

It did not say when the portal would be up and running again or what the technical glitch was, but it has crashed several times in the past month.

Later Thursday, the ministry announced the portal would be out of action for the entire day (6 May).

Booking procedures were also altered this week to ease the load on the system and prevent creating bottlenecks.

The portal was to go live on Thursday until 8 pm for those aged 35-36 to book a vaccination appointment.

The total number of vaccine doses against COVID-19 administered until May 4 amounted to 307,698 (35 doses per 100 inhabitants).

Some 31.9% (235,919 people) were vaccinated with the 1st dose of a licensed vaccine, while 9.9% (71.779 people) completed their vaccination regimen.

“Vaccination coverage in Cyprus continues at a steady pace, approaching the target for the first dose by the end of June, to more than 60% of citizens who can be vaccinated,” the Health Ministry said.

People of the age group of 30-39 are currently given priority for vaccination.

Those aged 33-34 are scheduled to book appointments through the portal on Friday, although this now seems unlikely due to the lengthy disruption.

“The results of vaccinations have begun to appear in Cyprus, with a dramatic reduction in hospital admissions for the elderly,” said the Health Ministry.

According to data, 84.8% of people aged 80 and over received at least the first dose of the vaccine, while those aged 70-79 coverage is 80.5%.

An increase is also recorded in the 60-69 age group, with the coverage rate reaching 58.4%.