How will we vaccinate all? Experts wary of too many COVID-19 vaccine seekers after May 1

Hit by a tsunami of cases that has brought in unspeakable miseries for the masses the Centre has widened the vaccination programme by including the 18 category from May 1 instead of the original schedule of the COVID Vaccine Task Force that had planned it for JulyAugust 2021The move has prompted wellknown virologists and health experts to ask are we prepared to inoculate so many people Do we have the required infrastructure and vaccines If not then should states decide the timingCitizens wait for shots at Dr Ambedkar BMC hospital in Kandivli on Monday PicSatej ShindeDr Subhash Hira Professor of Global Health at the University of WashingtonSeattle said the third phase of vaccination has been announced despite Phase 2 mdash for those between 45 and 59 years of age mdash facing inadequate supplies of vaccines from the Centre to states He said Maharashtra alone will have about 817 million 18 beneficiaries Maharashtra gets about 158 lakh doses a week he explainedldquoAt this rate it will take Maharashtra two years from now to cover the entire state Even if the weekly quota is doubled it will still take one year to complete the first round of the vaccine programmerdquo said Dr Hira pointing that most states will remain vulnerable to the expanded phase of the second wave that could go past another 68 months and be threatened by wave3 comprising Parkinsonism cases thereafterDr Hira also expressed concerns over too many people assembling at poorly managed testing and vaccination points stressing that these sites could be contributing to rising hospitalisations and bed oxygen and medicine shortage and eventually deaths midday had highlighted this concern in its report of April 24 ldquoA nasal vaccine delivery scheduled for August 2021 can be the only gamechangerrdquo he saidSpeaking from Vellore acclaimed virologist Dr Jacob John said ldquoIt is high time public health experts put their head together and ask why are we vaccinating people and who should be vaccinated first The first priority is to prevent death and ideally whoever is at high risk of death comorbids or in advanced age should be vaccinated on priority so that their lives could be saved This will automatically eliminate youths above 18rdquoDr John said ldquoUnfortunately we have no data of our own to rely upon We are going by the Western nationsrsquo data and the same cannot be made applicable in our country For instance if we should vaccinate pregnant women or notrdquo He said experts must look for answers to such questions from Indiarsquos perspective and then prioritise beneficiaries between 18 and 45 ldquoIf people in this bracket do not fall under the priority list then full freedom should be given to the respective statesrdquo He stressed the need for localising immunisationOn the possibility of a third wave Dr John added ldquoThe new variant which is seen in the second wave and many more variants to come may upset epidemiologists All I can say is be prepared for the worst while hoping for the bestrdquoDr Wiqar Shaikh Professor of Medicine Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals the 18 population in Mumbai is about 124 crore and it will take way too long at the current supply to vaccinate this group He fears the new lot overburdening the vaccine delivery staff ldquoOur frontline healthcare workers are already exhausted fighting COVID for more than a year nowrdquoDr Shaikh said the situation is particularly worse in rural areas that traditionally have a weak health apparatus ldquoIn such a case vaccination centres could become superspreaders after May 1rdquoGet ready for chaosA senior doctor at a vaccine centre who did not wish to be identified said they are vaccinating about 600 people a day due to shortage of shots ldquoWhen the stock is around a hundred we collect additional stock from the headquarters But we expect a large turnout after May 1 and it would be challenging to manage the crowd We anticipate police presence at vaccination centresrdquo said the doctor He said they are getting extra computers and printers to manage the additional formalities ldquoWe are hiring two more data entry operators making the total strength to eight and have roped in an additional team of doctors and nurses for the young crowdrdquoThe doctor added ldquoMany bank staffers and private agencies working under essential services are under pressure from their offices to take the vaccine but neither the state nor the Centre has made any vaccination leave policy making them to lose a dayrsquos pay or take an offrdquoHe also pitched for separate queues mdash one for citizens above sixty and another for fortyfive and above mdash and that the crowd below 45 should be made to queue up separately The doctors then expressed his worst fear He said ldquoWe are hoping there would be regular supply of vaccines in large numbers or else it would become chaotic In the given supply situation we feel vaccination centres wonrsquot have sufficient stockrdquo15LNo of doses given to state per week817mn18 beneficiaries in Maharashtra