Ecuador began the administration of a fourth dose of the coronavirus vaccine to the population over 50 years of age and has decided to authorize, after two years, mass activities and religious processions for Holy Week, it was reported on Friday.
The Minister of Health, Ximena Garzón, stated at a press conference that “this reinforcement is for those with health complications or a depressed immune system” who have reached the age of 50 and at least five months after receiving the third dose.
“We continue to decline (of infected), we continue to decrease the number of cases and also occupations at the hospital and intensive care level,” he added, while specifying that in many provinces the rate of new infections by this virus is lower than 5%.
Juan Zapata, president of the Special Operations Committee, which governs the policies to deal with the coronavirus, stressed that in 15 days the Holy Week holiday is scheduled and “the Catholic Church has the possibility of resuming the processions that are massive at the national level. , especially in cities like Quito and Guayaquil”.
Ecuador has registered one million cases of coronavirus since the end of February 2020, when the first case was presented, with 1,159 deaths this year and 35,423 deaths since the start of the pandemic. In this country, the Sinovac, Cansino, Pfizer and Astra Zeneca vaccines are especially administered.
Of the total of 17.4 million Ecuadorians, 85.6% have already received at least two doses and more than 5 million the third vaccine.
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