Elderly, differently-abled persons can now get Covid-19 vaccines near their homes

A medical officer gives a dose of Covid-19 vaccine to an old man, at a vaccination centre in Bengaluru. Credit: PTI Photo

The elderly and differently-abled persons can now get Covid-19 vaccines near their homes.

The Government of India on Thursday issued guidelines for setting up Near to Home Covid Vaccination Centres (NHCVC) for those above 60 years and the differently-abled to impart a people-centric and flexible approach to the Covid-19 vaccination drive.

“All individuals above 60 years of age with no vaccination or first dose vaccination and all individuals below 60 years with disability due to physical or medical conditions will be eligible to get the jabs at the NHCVC,” a health ministry official said.

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Such vaccination centres can be set up in non-health facility-based settings that are nearer to home, including community centres, RWA office, panchayat ghar, school buildings and old age homes, a health ministry statement said.

The beneficiaries can be registered on the CoWin platform either in advance or at the vaccination centre or as a facilitated cohort registration process.

NHCVC will be linked to an existing vaccination center which will be responsible to provide vaccines, logistics and human resources required for vaccination.

Once identified and verified for meeting vaccination centre criteria, all such sites will be registered on the CoWIN portal as NHCVC, the guidelines said.

The Union Health Ministry has advised all States and UTs to take note of these recommendations and undertake prompt action for their planning and effective implementation under the ongoing national Covid-19 vaccination drive.

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