This Monday the National Association of Businessmen of Colombia Andi received from President Iván Duque the first 1.5 million Sinovac doses purchased for the immunization of employees and collaborators in the private sector.
“This is an unprecedented public-private alliance in the country that acts in solidarity and that joins efforts in the National Vaccination Plan against Covid-19,” said the president, Iván Duque, in his intervention in the delivery of the doses in the House of Nariño.
For his part, Andi’s president, Bruce Mac Master, affirmed that the vaccination of private companies in Colombia is the first mass corporate vaccination program in the world.
“It is a powerful alliance, it is a timely alliance that has also called for the solidarity of Colombian businessmen with their workers,” added Mac Master.
In total there are 2.5 million vaccines, from China, purchased by private companies to immunize about 1.2 million workers.
At the moment, Colombia has applied 17,227,818 doses of vaccines against covid-19, of which 6,118,463 correspond to complete vaccination schedules. The National Government has proposed to vaccinate 25 million people before the end of July, as confirmed by President Duque.
Mass vaccination is the accelerator of safe reactivation and it is not in the mind that someone is betting on failure. This Public-Private Alliance to support vaccination is a milestone and the largest corporate solidarity event in the history of the country. # CompaniesForVaccination pic.twitter.com/jFJTs51ohy
– Iván Duque ???????? (@IvanDuque) June 28, 2021
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With the delivery of the first doses to private companies, which landed in the country over the weekend, it is expected that in the next few days the immunization process will begin, about which some questions also arise.
Is the vaccine free?
Yes. Gratuity was one of the conditions that the Ministry of Health placed on the private sector to be able to carry out vaccination plans in their companies. Therefore, the cost of managing the transport of the doses, the storage, the application and all the necessary logistics will be borne by the companies.
The companies will pay US $ 60, that is, about 225,000 pesos for each vaccinated employee.
Who will be responsible for administering the vaccine?
The IPS of the family compensation funds will be in charge of applying the biological. The vaccination process will be very similar to the current process of the National Government. Therefore, the IPS will carry out the work of identifying the population to be vaccinated from the companies, will carry out the scheduling and finally will apply the doses.
Is the application of the vaccine mandatory?
No. In Colombia the application of the vaccine against Covid-19 is not mandatory.
Who is responsible for the possible adverse damages of the vaccine applied by the companies?
The National Government will assume the burden of indemnity against possible risks.
Will there be prioritizations by age, as in the Government’s National Plan?
Vaccination coverage will be for all workers regardless of age. The regulations made by the National Government for this purpose say that companies that enter this modality have the obligation to vaccinate all of their unvaccinated workers.
Read also: Serious effects against covid-19 vaccines are very low, explains MinSalud
Will the workers’ family members also receive vaccines?
Although the Government allowed companies to do so, for the moment the 1.5 doses of vaccines that arrived in the country this weekend will be assigned only to workers.
If a worker received the first dose from the National Government, can he apply the second dose from the company to which he belongs?
According to Bruce Mac Master, president of Andi, ideally the person should continue with the vaccination plan assigned by the National Government regardless of when the second dose has been scheduled.
For the leader of the employers’ association, it is fair that the worker who has already been prioritized by the National Vaccination Plan leaves the quota to another person who has not received the biological.
Companies that will vaccinate their employees
According to the Minister of Health, the 2.5 million vaccines are destined for 1,505 companies, including Ecopetrol, Bancolombia, BBVA, Claro, EPM, Tigo, Yanbal, Linio and La Haus.
Employees of McDonald’s, Alquería, Corona, Nestlé, as well as those of Titán Plaza, Manitoba and TÜL will also be vaccinated.
Other companies that acquired anticovid vacuums are Bavaria, Rappi, Grupo Argos, Grupo Diana, Grupo Levapan, Grupo Bolívar (Davivienda) and Grupo Gilinski (Semana Magazine).
The Ardila Lülle Organization (Postobón, Central Cervecera de Colombia, Incauca, Los Coches, Atlético Nacional, RCN Radio and RCN Televisión) and Grupo Nutresa (Compañía Nacional de Chocolates, Colcafé, El Corral, Zenú) will also vaccinate their employees.
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