Chile Expands Bivalent Vaccination Campaign to New Groups

Chile's Ministry of Health announced on Thursday measures to reinforce the bivalent vaccination strategy by expanding the schedule and the groups to be inoculated.

RELATED:
Chile: Reform Approved in Congress for New Constituent Process

As of January 16, the Bivalent vaccination will cover all persons over 50 years old, in addition to personnel performing critical functions in the State Administration, Security Forces and Corps and Armed Forces, among others who perform functions considered essential for direct attention to the public.

So far, the vaccine is inoculated to people over 60 years old, healthcare personnel, immunocompromised and people over 12 years old suffering from chronic diseases.

The decision to "broaden the groups to be immunized with the Bivalent vaccine" is "in line with the different opinions we have received from the Ministry and with the epidemiological analysis we have carried out," said the Minister of Health, Ximena Aguilera.

Starting Monday, January 16, the group of people who can be inoculated with bivalent vaccine against COVID-19 will be expanded Having your complete vaccination schedule is very important! 

For his part, the Undersecretary of Public Health, Cristóbal Cuadrado, referred to the benefits of the vaccine.  "I want to emphasize that international evidence shows us today that these vaccines are very safe and effective," Cuadrado said.

The first stage of the bivalent vaccine campaign in Chile began in October 2022. The country is the first in Latin America to immunize its population with it. 

The country's health authorities called on the population to get the vaccine, which has an excellent range of protection for severe courses of the disease, according to the Minister of Health. "This is the time when we can go to vaccination centers to increase inoculation rates," said the Undersecretary of Assistance Networks, Fernando Araos.