Vaccination drive in top gear, hopes to reach general public in 7-10 days

Israel plans to start vaccinating the general public within 7 to 10 days, senior Ministry of Health official Dr. Sharon Alroy-Preis reported on Friday. The goal, she said, was 100,000 inoculations per day operating 24/7 to encompass the entire population by the end of March. Since the drive was launched on Dec. 20, shots have been administrated to 210,000 people, mostly the priority groups of medical staff, elderly and high-risk cases. Israel rates the world’s second fastest covid vaccination mover per capita.

This program coincides with a steep hike in coronavirus infection, to curb which Israel goes into full lockdown on Sunday, Dec. 27 – initially for two weeks but most likely longer.

According to the Ministry of Health update on Saturday morning, 4,046 new cases were diagnosed on Friday – 4.1pc testing positive –  with 527 in serious condition and 183 on ventilators. The number of deaths in 10 months jumped to 3,186