Y. Babakumarov: Collective immunity will allow the city to return to the previous rhythm of life
Deputy Akim of Almaty, Yerzhan Babakumarov, during a press conference of the Central Communications Service under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan said that all conditions have been created in the megapolis, the necessary infrastructure for vaccination has been deployed. However, some citizens still have not made the decision to get vaccinated.
“I want to once again call on the people of Almaty, who have not yet decided to get vaccinated, to drop all fears and doubts and get vaccinated against the coronavirus. Every resident of the city must show civic responsibility and activity, ”Y. Babakumarov said.
“Vaccination is a strategic issue for us, on which the stable development of the city ultimately depends. Before the start of mass vaccination in February of this year, the entire infrastructure, including the cold chain, and vaccination points were prepared, "Babakumarov said.
According to the Deputy Akim of Almaty, now, is the best moment for vaccination, most of the townspeople have returned from vacations, the classrooms of schools and university audiences have filled up. The city returned to a full-fledged working regime. Only vaccination can preserve this condition and prevent a new spike in the incidence.
Y. Babakumarov emphasized that 250 vaccination points in medical organizations, schools, cultural and sports facilities, in markets and in the city's shopping and entertainment center are ready for vaccination in Almaty. Today, 160 of them function, 237 vaccination teams work, including 1,028 medical workers.
The deputy akim of Almaty recalled, that in February, as part of the first phase of vaccination, health workers, teachers and law enforcement officers were vaccinated, more than 3 thousand people in total.
“Since April, we have begun to vaccinate the population. Initially, the task was to vaccinate about 1.2 million people out of the 2 million officially registered residents of Almaty. This is the size of the population subject to vaccination, with the exception of children, pregnant women and those with medical treatment, ”Y. Babakumarov recalled.
At the first stage, out of more than 2 million inhabitants, minus children under 18 years of age, 602 thousand people, pregnant women - 20 551, with medical outlets - 173 thousand, the task was to vaccinate 1 090 103 people.
To date, the first component of vaccination against COVID was received by more than 960 thousand people subject to vaccination, which is 77%, and more than 873 thousand residents received the second component.
“With the upcoming Pfizer vaccine, the vaccine population is 1.3 million, including teens 12-17 and pregnant women. Thus, we hope by joint efforts, to overcome the bar of 300 thousand. According to the experience of countries where mass vaccination is carried out, in order to reliably stabilize the situation, it is necessary to vaccinate 90% of the population or more, ”the deputy akim of Almaty said.
According to preliminary data, the delivery of the Pfizer vaccine is expected in November 2021. At the moment, preparations are underway to ensure the cold chain, the logistics of supplies to vaccination points are being built.
Y. Babakumarov said that he daily monitors the rates of vaccination in Almaty, and so far, they are far from ideal. He called on the unvaccinated residents of the metropolis to seriously think about their own safety, about the health of family and friends, about the quality of life, which may not change for the better due to restrictions.
“Collective immunity will allow the city to return to the previous rhythm of life, restore the usual way of life and remove all restrictions from which everyone is tired. The effectiveness of vaccination can be judged by the fact that the fourth wave of coronavirus infection in Almaty was two times shorter in duration than in other regions. During this period, the population was actively vaccinated, more than 10 thousand people were vaccinated per day. This made it possible to create a certain stratum of the population with immunity against COVID, ”continued Y. Babakumarov.
Speaking about the rate of vaccination, the deputy akim said that the overwhelming majority of unvaccinated townspeople fall ill and end up in intensive care. Of the total number of admitted to hospitals, only 0.03% are patients who have previously received a vaccine against COVID. This fact speaks of the effectiveness of timely vaccination.