UAE Covid vaccine: 82% eligible residents get jab

The UAE has vaccinated close to 82 per cent of eligible categories of residents against Covid-19, a top official has announced.

Additionally, over 92 per cent of the elderly residents have been vaccinated.

Dr Farida Al Hosani, official spokesperson for the UAE Health Sector, said a total of 12.96 million vaccine doses have been administered so far.

This takes the rate of doses to 131.11 per 100 people – the highest in the world.

The official said more Covid vaccines would be made available to children.

Currenly, Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccines are available to children aged 12 and above. The Sinopharm vaccine is available to those aged over 16 years.

Dr Farida said that Covid vaccines would be made available to more categories of children. This will be done after clinical trials in this regard are completed.

The official also said that the UAE has approved the emergency use of a highly effective new treatment for Covid-19.

The country is the first in the world to approve Sotrovimab (Vir-7831). It will be used to treat patients aged 12 and above. It has been found to be effective in treating mild and moderate infections, in addition to Covid variants.

sahim@khaleejtimes.com