Prime Minister Janez Janša announced some good news regarding the covid-19 epidemic and the related vaccination process, which is crucial for the return to the time we knew before the epidemic. “There are currently around 800 thousand people in Slovenia who are at least partially protected due to the vaccination or because they already recovered from the illness, which fills us with optimism that we will – with all the necessary preventive measures – overcome the covid-19 epidemic by summer and return to our normal lives.”
When Prime Minister Janez Janša shared this optimistic news, on the 17th of May, 559,681 people were already vaccinated with the first dose of the vaccine, while 294,082 people were also vaccinated with the second dose already. There were also 237,630 people who already recovered from covid-19. The current data from the 19th of May shows that 571,797 people were vaccinated with the first dose of the vaccine so far, and 298,593 have also received the second dose too.
According to the National Institute of Public Health, the largest share of people was vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, namely 354,644 with the first dose of the vaccine and 232,016 with the second dose too. 155,105 people have already been vaccinated with the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, and 16,653 have already received the second dose as well. 49,852 people were vaccinated with the first dose of Moderna and 37,728 with the second dose. 12,196 people were vaccinated with the Janssen vaccine, which only requires one dose.
The population group aged 70 to 74 is the most vaccinated, with 70,135 people already receiving the first dose and 60,194 people receiving both doses. General statistics show that 36,814 women and 33,321 men received the first dose, while 31,686 women and 28,508 men received the second dose as well. The highest share of people who have already received the first dose is in the Municipality of Osilnica, and the highest share of those who have already received both doses is in the Municipality of Log – Dragomer.
Official data from the health authorities of individual countries show that at least 200 million doses of the vaccines have already been distributed in the EU Member States by Tuesday morning. Meanwhile, 1.5 billion doses of the vaccines have been distributed worldwide, the Slovenian Press Agency reports. According to current data, the European Union is on track to achieve 70 percent vaccination coverage (255 million people out of a total 448 million).
At Monday’s government press conference, Mateja Logar, head of the advisory group at the Ministry of Health, pointed out that we need to stay aware of the fact that although trends in the number of infections and new hospital admissions are favourable, more than a third of all patients in intensive care units are being treated for covid-19. The majority of these individuals are older than 50. “These are people who could have been vaccinated,” she pointed out.
It is also advisable to follow the recommended protective measures after vaccination
The National Institute of Public Health emphasises that the risk of transmission of the infection by vaccinated persons is significantly lower than that of those who are not vaccinated. “However, as the risk cannot be completely ruled out, we should still follow the recommended protective measures even after vaccination, in an effort to prevent possible spread.” Vaccination, however, is considered the simplest, safest, and most effective measure to protect against covid-19. It not only protects those who are vaccinated but also others by reducing the spread of the disease. It is crucial that we protect our own health, as well as the health of our family members, friends, neighbours, acquaintances and co-workers.
Nina Žoher
