Every time there is a delayed vaccine delivery, the whole country panics.
“This must mean we’re being pushed back,” people tell each other at bus stops. “We will never get our jabs before June 27.”
And meanwhile, the authorities keep changing their minds about who to vaccinate first: the elderly, the essentials or front-line workers, or those who have already had their first shot.
Did you know that the deadline of 27 June was actually pushed back to 4 July in early February, but then reintroduced days later. What a hug!
Age before service round 2
Around the same time, Denmark’s nationwide strategy was changed to prioritize the protection of self-sufficient citizens over the age of 85 before some health workers in the front line.
Sรธren Brostrรธm, the outgoing head of the National Board of Health’s health authority, explained to Politiken that old age is the decisive factor in light of COVID-19’s severity, so this age group must be protected as soon as possible.
And now the Danish Regions have basically said the same thing: it wants the entire schedule to be changed so that all vaccinations are carried out according to age, with the oldest prioritized first.
Confusion about inclusion
“It is quite obvious that the process has resulted in too many confused and frustrated elderly,” Danish Regions chairman Stephanie Lose told Politiken.
“It has not been good enough. We want the vaccination plan to be changed. โ
Danish Regions therefore advises the state to postpone its plans to vaccinate important workers and vulnerable people under the age of 65 until it has vaccinated all people over the age of 65 and only with the oldest.
Many frontline workers, especially in the health sector, have already started their vaccination process, and the Danish Regions do not want to stop it.
“But when you’re done with that, you have to change strategy,” Lose said.
Does not work properly
The Lung Association, the lung association, supports Danish Regions and claims that many people with chronic conditions are confused about when they are entitled to be vaccinated.
Eg. Are many people “with a chronic disease with a particularly increased risk” not sure if they qualify for ‘Group 5’, explained Dr. Torben Mogensen, chairman of the Lung Association, due to the current age regulations.
“It’s not working properly at the moment,” he said.
Who needs it most?
However, the Arthritis Association, the Arthritis Association, is against any change as it envisages that some of its members will have to extend a period of self-isolation that has already lasted a year.
“I think we have to respect that there are some people who need the vaccine more than others,” said the Arthritis Association leader Mette Bryde Lind.
“Let us not take any rash. Simply take the necessary time to write to the patients to inform them about which group they are in. โ
Source: The Nordic Page