Czech Republic to have COVID-19 vaccines for all by mid-2021, says epidemiologist Prymula

Prague, Aug 27 (CTK) – The Czech Republic expects to have enough anti-COVID vaccines for all applicants by mid-2021, while until then, vaccination should be available mainly for vulnerable groups of people, Roman Prymula, the government commissioner for research in the health sector, has stated.

Prymula, an epidemiologist, spoke to media after a meeting with Health Ministry officials and Czech Chamber of Commerce managers.

“We previously discussed the European Union’s central purchase of the AstraZeneca vaccine for a majority of the at-risk population in our country, which is 3.6 million people,” Prymula said.

“Further negotiations with additional producers are underway. In mid-2021, there will be enough vaccines [in the Czech Republic] also for the applicants from outside the recommended [vulnerable] groups. This is a kind of a deadline until which we have to do with the [anti-virus] measures we have been taking. Afterwards, the situation should improve dramatically.”

The at-risk groups include seniors, seriously ill people, and those with chronic diseases.

According to the Health Information and Statistics Institute (UZIS) head Ladislav Dušek, most of the current COVID-19 patients in the Czech Republic have no symptoms or only a mild course of the disease. Only 5 percent of them end up in hospitals, and the disease is very serious in about 0.6 percent of cases.

Those who die with COVID-19 are mostly elderly people with many other health troubles, Dušek said on Wednesday.

Health Minister Adam Vojtěch (for ANO) said his ministry, together with the public health authorities, are drafting new rules for placing people in quarantine and isolation. The rules would apply exclusively to those who tested positive for COVID-19 and their closest contacts, Vojtěch said.

This may have a positive effect for cultural and health facilities as well as agricultural enterprises, he said.