Vaccination against flu and covid is brought forward to the end of September

The Public Health Commission, in which all the autonomous communities and the Ministry of Health are represented, has updated the criteria for the next vaccination campaign against flu and covid-19, and has established that it will begin in the different autonomies from the last week of September and during October. Furthermore, in the new document Recommendations for vaccination against flu and covid-19 in the 2023-2024 season in Spain, personnel from “health establishments” are included in the target population, such as those who work in pharmacies.

Likewise, during the meeting held this Tuesday, the evolution of the epidemiological situation of the coronavirus was analyzed. Thus, they point out that, in recent weeks, “a slight increase has been detected, which is stabilizing.” The infection rate is around 130 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in Primary Care. Furthermore, there are three cases per 100,000 inhabitants requiring hospitalization.

In a document made public in July, the authorities had announced that the vaccination campaign would begin in October, but they advanced that the date could be “adapted depending on the availability of vaccines.” Immunization is prioritized in nursing homes and other disability care centers and the population aged 80 and over, all without forgetting “the strategic importance played by health and social health personnel.”

Vaccination is also recommended for those people with comorbidities that increase the risk of becoming seriously ill from Covid, such as chronic heart, kidney or liver ailments, diabetes, obesity or any type of immunodeficiency, among others.

The intention of the administrations is to reach or exceed Covid and flu vaccination coverage of 75% in the elderly and in health and socio-health personnel, as well as exceed 60% in pregnant women and people with risk conditions. These objectives are in line with those of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Commission.

The document from last July provides that people who request it after individualized assessment will be vaccinated against covid-19 outside the campaign. In these cases, the interval with previous doses or infection must be taken into account (at least five months).

Finally, the ministry has reported on the monitoring carried out by the Center for the Coordination of Health Alerts and Emergencies (CCAES) during this summer. Mainly, from the botulism outbreak in which 13 cases have been recorded in June and July. And, on the other hand, it has shown the surveillance work carried out on vector-borne diseases that, they highlight, “has intensified”; and demonstrated the usefulness of the Mosquito Alert Platform. In this regard, they recall that five human cases of the West Nile virus were detected in Spain this year.

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