DGHS revises age limit for mass vaccination campaign


FE ONLINE REPORT | Published: August 06, 2021 13:40:45 | Updated: August 06, 2021 19:39:31


File photo, (Collected)

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has revised the age limit for the mass Covid-19 vaccination campaign in the country due to the complexity of the national voter identity card.

Many people above the age of 18 do not have a national identity card which could cause chaos in the field. Therefore, the age limit of the mass inoculation campaign has been revised to 25 from the previous 18 years old, according to the DGHS.

Prof ABM Khurshid Alam, director-general of the DGHS, confirmed the change while he was addressing the inaugural ceremony of Covid-19 Vaccine Campaign 2021 on Friday.

Some 3.2 million people will be vaccinated in 7 days under the mass campaign, he added. And, due to the complexity of the voter ID card, the decision to vaccinate over 18 years of age has been withdrawn.

However, citizens who are above the age of 25 will be vaccinated accordingly, he continued.

Meanwhile, preference will be given to women over 50 years of age, the physically challenged, and those in remote areas in the mass campaign, he mentioned.

Earlier, Health Minister Zahid Maleque at a press briefing on Friday said that a huge number of marginal people will be inoculated for the first time simultaneously from 4,600 unions, 1,054 municipalities, and 433 wards in the city corporations across the country.

A total of 32,706 vaccinators and 48,459 volunteers will take part in this special drive, he added.

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