ARCHIVED - Vaccination of 16 to 18 year olds begins in Alicante next week

The lower age group of 12 to 15-year-olds will have received the first dose before September 8 in Valencia region's three province, including Alicante

The Valencia region's Ministry of Health has brought forward the vaccination of students and will begin the immunisation of 16 to 18-year-olds next week, so that all young people aged 12 and over can return to college and school having had a least one dose of vaccine.

The acceleration of the vaccine campaign was announced on Thursday morning, August 5, following a meeting of ministers to discuss how to best to protect young people before they return to studies after the summer.

Regional Minister of Health, Ana Barceló, assured the vaccination campaign "will enter the final stretch next week with the acceleration and advancement of the school immunisation deadlines, so that pupils aged 12 and over will start classes in the new term with at least one dose".

The vaccination of 16 to 18-year-olds from next week has been brought forward by a fortnight, and two weeks later, it will be the turn of 12 to 15-year-olds, with a view to making sure they have some level of protection against Covid before September 8.

The Valencian Community will begin to vaccinate young people from 16 to 18 years old next week thanks to an increase in doses, and minors under 16 years of age must come either accompanied by or with the authorisation of a parent or guardian.

According to the Minister for Education, Vicent Marzà, "the advancement of the vaccination campaign will make classrooms even safer" and will allow the next school term to start with  "better conditions than the previous one, with all personnel and teaching staff immunised and with the students having had at least one dose ".

So far, 5,042 teachers and staff at educational centres and schools have been immunised and more than €39 million has been invested "to guarantee all the protection and hygiene measures are in place, as well as the disinfection of the buildings".

"With this forward planning and extensive hygiene measures we are confident that educational centres will continue to be the safest spaces for socialisation", adds Marzà.

Anybody who has not yet received their first dose, due to vacations or being infected with Covid when their appointment was issued, is also reminded that they can request/adapt their immunisation appointment at the gva.san website.

"The aim is to make it as easy as possible to attend appointments to get vaccinated and thus speed up the process", says Barceló

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