COVID vaccine to be made available to residents in February

GOV’T PRESS RELEASE (JANUARY 4, 2021): The Government of the Virgin Islands will be collaborating with several agencies in supporting a national programme to make the AstraZeneca vaccine available to residents on a voluntary basis.

In a statement in the House of Assembly during the Fifth Sitting of the Third Session of the Fourth House of Assembly on December 31, Minister for Health and Social Development, Honourable Carvin Malone said his ministry will work closely with Public Health England, the Caribbean Public Health Agency, CARPHA, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), and the World Health Organisation (WHO) on a national programme to make the vaccine available to residents on a purely voluntary basis.

Honourable Malone said, “Published safety data indicates that this vaccine is well tolerated and has no serious safety events confirmed related to the vaccine.  Safety data will continue to be collected and monitored as the vaccine is rolled out world-wide including in the BVI.  Work on a national programme to make the vaccine available to residents on a purely voluntary basis will start early in the new year in preparation for when the vaccine is delivered in the Territory.”

The national programme will be led by the Ministry of Health and involve collaboration and communication with a wide cross-section of stakeholders across government, private, and non-government sectors.

The vaccine is expected to be available in the Virgin Islands in February 2021 as the United Kingdom Government plans for deployment of the vaccine throughout the Overseas Territories.

Honourable Malone explained that effective communication and innovative strategies are crucial to addressing the public’s concerns regarding the vaccine. He said that the Ministry of Health’s objective is to reach out to the community with information and offer vaccine to all targeted populations.

The Minister for Health said, “Vaccination of the world’s population is an important strategy to end the continued menace of COVID-19 to the world. The territory must not only do its part in this effort, but also for our own sakes to reduce the impact of this pandemic on the territory, its inhabitants, and our economy.”

The Ministry of Health and Social Development aspires to provide a caring and integrated system of health and social services that facilitates the recovery of human development and quality of life in the British Virgin Islands.