  As of Jan. 18, there have been 29,389 people vaccinated in the country. - Casa Presidencial photo - |
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 Published Thursday, January 21, 2021 More than 100,000 vaccines against
covid-19 have been imported By the A.M. Costa Rica staff On Tuesday, a DHL flight from Miami to Costa Rica landed with a cargo of 16,575 vaccine doses against covid-19 purchased from Pfizer. This is the fifth vaccine shipment that has landed in the country. The first batch of 9,750 doses arrived on Dec. 23. The second cargo with 11,700 arrived on Dec. 30. The third set with 33,150 doses arrived on Jan. 5 and the fourth shipment with 33,150 doses arrived on Tuesday, Jan. 12. So far, 104,325 doses have been imported. As of Jan. 18, there have been 29,389 people vaccinated in the country. All those inoculated are from the first group of pre-selected individuals, which include health workers, elderly people living in nursing homes, nursing home staff, firefighters, policemen, and workers of the National Emergency Commission, among others. To receive the treatment, participants must have a Costa Rican ID for natives or a residency ID, known as DIMEX specific for immigrants with resident status. Authorities expect the arrival of 154,050 doses before the end of January. That will allow 77,025 people to get two doses, approximately 1.5% of the country's population. The cost of a vaccine with Pfizer is approximately $12, including cost of transportation. The government bought 3 million doses of that vaccine, costing $36 million. The budget for the purchase of vaccines and supplies is $70.7 million-plus, financed with the National Emergency Fund administered by the National Emergency Commission. According to health authorities, it is estimated that the vaccination campaign against covid-19 will take a year to disperse among the country. While the vaccination campaign advances, authorities from the Ministry of Health reported on Wednesday the most updated status of the covid-19 public health crisis in the country: 835 new covid-19 cases are reported, bringing the total to 40,343 current active cases. 23,417 foreign-born people have been infected, totaling 187,712 cases since March, approximately 12.4% of the total cases. Of these, authorities confirmed the death of 32 foreign-born patients. But since October, there is no updated information about foreign-born deaths due to covid-19. 534 patients are being treated in public hospitals, where 222 patients are in ICUs in delicate health conditions. Their ages range from 1 to 93-years-old. And 312 patients are in recovery rooms. Many of the remaining infected patients are quarantined in their homes. 144,877 patients have fully recovered, a 77.2% recovery rate of the total cases since March. 561,356 covid-19 tests have been conducted in Costa Rica since March, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering of Johns Hopkins University in the U.S. 2,492 deaths are listed as covid-19 related, approximately 1.3% death rate of the total cases since March. Of these 940 are women and 1,552 men. The ages range from a 2-year-old to a 101-year-old. Readers can see the updated number of total patients in each district at the National Distance Education University on its Covid-19 Map.  According to Johns Hopkins University, the pandemic has killed more than 2 million people worldwide. -------------------------- Should the government speed up the vaccination campaign? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com         
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