New Batch of COVID Vaccines to Arrive Within Weeks

The number of new COVID infections is once again on the decline, but the government is still ensuring that it keeps up with its stock of vaccines for all age ranges of persons who can receive their anti-COVID shots. Today, the Ministry of Health and Wellness informed that it is awaiting the arrival of AstraZeneca and Pfizer adult vaccines, in the next few weeks. There are currently over a hundred and two thousand doses of the Pfizer vaccines on hand and slightly more of the Johnson and Johnson brand vaccines. Meanwhile, new numbers coming out of the ministry also show that Orange Walk District holds the highest number of vaccinated persons with fifty-eight point six percent of its population. Corozal is next with fifty-four point two percent, followed by the Belize District with exactly fifty percent. Cayo has recorded forty-eight point five percent, Toledo has forty-four point two percent and Stann Creek has the lowest number of vaccinated persons with thirty-nine point five percent. The number of persons countrywide who have been fully vaccinated is just a fraction over the fifty percent mark, while some fifty-two point eight percent have received only the first dose. Fewer than fifty thousand residents have gone to receive their booster shots so far. For children age twelve and older, twenty-six thousand, seven hundred have gotten their second dose and just under thirty-two thousand have received their first dose. The numbers for children aged five to eleven are among the lowest. Slightly over ten thousand of those children have received their first dose of the COVID vaccine and fewer than four thousand of them have received their second dose. Up to July fourth, there were six hundred and eighty COVID deaths recorded in Belize and eight hundred and fifteen active cases on record.