Hospitals, nursing homes prepare for vaccine shots as 1st batch of 1.5 mln doses begins to ship
By Kim Han-joo
SEOUL, Feb. 25 (Yonhap) -- Trucks and ships packed with the first of some 1.5 million doses of coronavirus vaccines headed to hospitals and nursing homes Thursday, marking the start of the long-awaited vaccination program in South Korea where COVID-19 cases are nearing 90,000 since the first confirmed case in January last year.
The nationwide distribution of the AstraZeneca vaccine for some 750,000 people, mostly those at nursing homes, came as the country is set to kick off the free inoculation campaign Friday.
The vaccine doses were produced by SK Bioscience Co. under a manufacturing partnership deal with British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca.
A truck carrying vials of AstraZeneca's vaccine departs from a cold chain logistics warehouse in Icheon, 80 km southeast of Seoul. under the strict guard of the Army and police on Feb. 25, 2021. (Yonhap)
After being temporarily stored at a cold chain logistics warehouse in Icheon, 80 kilometers southeast of Seoul, a total of 1.57 million doses of vaccines under AstraZeneca's full two-dose regimen will be delivered to a total of 1,900 long-term care hospitals and public health centers across the country for the next five days.
The first batch of AstraZeneca's vaccine is enough to provide jabs to 785,000 people, which is 35,000 higher than the previous estimate.
The AstraZeneca vaccine is deemed more convenient for mass inoculations as its storage temperature is 2 to 8 C, compared with the vaccine by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. that requires ultra-cold chain storage.
According to health authorities, a total of 289,271 people, or 93.6 percent of the patients and people working at facilities, including sanatoriums, nursing facilities and rehabilitation facilities, will receive the first shot.
The vaccines, which are shipped in container trucks and ships, will be escorted by the police and military vehicles and personnel.
However, airplanes to some parts of the country, including the southern island of Jeju, could be used depending on weather conditions.
Meanwhile, Pfizer's vaccine will be offered to medical staff members starting Saturday. South Korea hopes to attain herd immunity by November after inoculating 70 percent of its population by September.
khj@yna.co.kr
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