60% of population has had first COVID shot
(CNS): Following a surge of people getting the vaccine at the weekend and several more over the last 24 hours, 60% of the population, or almost 39,000 people, have now had at least one shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 52% have completed the full two-dose course. From now until 9 June, anyone getting their first shot of the vaccine will be entered into a prize draw. That is the last date for residents to secure their free shot against the coronavirus as the shelf life of our current supplies ends on 30 June. That means that in order for people to get both doses before the vaccines expire, their first must be on or before 9 June.
The weekend vaccine drive at the airport clinic saw more than 730 people get their first shot, and officials are now doing everything they can to encourage everyone who has not yet been vaccinated to come forward before the supply expires. PACT Government ministers urged their constituents who have hesitated to come forward because the vaccine is safe.
Tourism Minister Kenneth Bryan, one of several members of government getting their first dose at the weekend, explained why people should get vaccinated. “We are dealing with a global pandemic. I think it is fair to say that everyone knows the seriousness of what this can do to human life, and ailments,” he said. But while keeping everyone safe is the priority, the other main reason to get the community vaccinated is to keep the economy going, he added.
“This is part of the ultimate goal in the long term — to safely open our economy,” Bryan said. “As you know, tourism is our second pillar and a major revenue earner and in order to continue to provide for the people of this country, we need that revenue — but putting safety first. So, we think that these are some of the first steps to getting there. The medical advice has told us that when we get to around 80 percent that we can start making the necessary steps to safely open the borders. So, safety first, economy second and making people get back to work and money flowing back into our economy.”
No new cases of coronavirus were detected in today’s test results. There are still 18 active but asymptomatic cases of the virus among those in isolation and quarantine.
Details of the COVID-19 vaccination schedule can be found at here.
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Category: Health, Medical Health
I am happy that the HSA is now open more hours. However, the people running the vaccination program are ignoring the fact that a lot of people do not have cars and that they buses do not run all the time. For example, it is not reasonable to expect people in North Side to walk or bicycle to Bodden Town. We should do what the US is now doing and offer free taxi rides to and from vaccination sites in order to get as many people vaccinated as possible.
It cost me $26 by taxi from west bay road to the airport to get the shot. And the taxi driver did not even blink when quoting the fare.
Taxi drivers have been struggling the last 14 months, barely scraping by. So quit complaining. Its disguisting.
I mean, they could try to do something else. It’s not exactly a vocation that precludes you from other working spheres.
The biggest issue is that a good chunk of taxi drivers cannot do anything else. They’re barely literate in a few cases. They can handle large numbers though, I’ll give them that.
Here’s a thought. Maybe it’s their prices that are the problem and that instead of trying to rip 5 people off a day, they’d make more money charging 15 people less.
Every challenge create opportunities. Taxi drivers should have started re education last year.
Or lower the fare and actually make money again.
Well i stood outside the hospital for two days hoping i could get it before they moved it to the airport and was there the first day that my age group and initials permitted.
Because i had the means and motivation.
Clearly some lack the motivation and are being inspired by the prizes.
Some lack the means, the expanded access is an improvement, we need to do just a little bit more to make it super easy for the folks on the fence.
Does anyone know why government has stopped updating the official coronavirus website for a week now? What are they not telling us and why shut down the official information site they kept telling us to refer to??? Here is what has been up for the past 8 days.
https://www.exploregov.ky/coronavirus-statistics
Yes.
just good ole civil service incompetence.
Surely there is no reason that results could not be uploaded in real-time……..gov’t or the central lab also needs to publish the cycle rates (PCR test operating thresholds). WHO has new guidelines on this (finally). The higher the rate the much less reliable the data. Arguably we need only pay attention to the data/ outcomes collected under the correct conditions/ cycle rate.
Hopefully we can still use the shots after June 9th for 1st doses as they still provide very good protection and shouldn’t go to waste.
Or maybe we should send them to a country where the citizens would appreciate them and both doses would definitely be used, rather than hoping those that haven’t decided by then to get their first shot somehow magically change their minds and get half the dosage before the vaccine expires.
no they won’t and it will just create a big question mark over our vaccination ‘strategy’
Go get your shots boys…
https://www.studyfinds.org/virility-the-virus-covid-found-in-penile-tissue-may-even-lead-to-erectile-dysfunction/
Chucky Cheese win a price isn’t appealing. This is big money Cayman Islands there should be a 2nd pension fund withdrawal from those grossly underperforming overcharging pensions to incentivize people to get the vaccine.
More people have died from gun and knife crime in Cayman.
Many more have died on our roads, yet they are still open.
If we didn’t go into lockdown you wouldn’t be saying this.
It’s the same in other countries which HAD epidemics. To give you an idea, 7 out of 10 deaths are caused by non-communicable chronic diseases worldwide (WHO).
And they died after contracting covid. If they hadn’t than they would probably still have more years left.
“I didn’t want it at first because I thought it had 5G microchips, but went yesterday for the free BK Hamburger”
Can’t make this up
EXACTLY.. Worried about a vaccine that is so far proven to save lives, but then line up to get one of the worlds biggest killer! FAST FOODS! HERES YOUR SIGN!
My people says the monkey!
Maybe you should go back home if you don’t like the way things are being run here. We protect our own. We are doing it better than anyone else on the planet. If you don’t feel blessed to be here, maybe this isn’t your place.
…. and THERE’S YOUR SIGN. The one that reads EXIT.
if you are so confident you are doing things right…you would not resort to the the love-it or leave-it nonsense.
I’m a born multi generation Caymanian so no where for me to run!!! Have no idea what you are even talking about protecting your own??! I am saying people are so against the vaccine but will go just to get a free Burger, which is the real killer! BTW.. The quote “here’s your sign” is a comedic song by Jeff Foxworthy. Look it up then you will understand!
This Saturday should be the last day at the Airport. Anyone that wants the vaccine and can get there has done so by now.
Take the show on the road! Pop up beside Construction Sites, Supermarket Parking Lots, Library Bus Stop, WORC, UCCI, Public Beach, Mango Tree, Brunch, if there is an event in the next three weeks, the pop up vaccine stop should be there, even if its after 4:30, even if it’s at a lunch time, even if it’s on a Sunday.
At this point half of me wants to say the remaining folks don’t deserve this amazing effort made by GOV, but half of me thinks they just cant get to the airport during business hours.
business hours?? they have Saturdays and evenings available, and it’s been that way for a month! (or more)……
There is a vaccine clinic at Camana Bay tonight from 5-9 pm. Most nights the clinic at the airport is open until 7. As well as every Saturday.
There will be a clinic at Boden Town Public Beach next Wed. night from 5-9 pm.
There will be a clinic on East End on the 26th from 4-9 pm.
West Bay Clinics will be at the Primary Hall on the 24 and 31 from 5-9 pm.
Those excuses don’t fly. Anyone who wants a vaccine has AMPLE AMPLE opportunity. What do you want, someone to come into your. bedroom and vaccinate you in the night at at your convenience??
The HSA has gone to incredible ends to assure that everyone can get a vaccine. public health has visited the homes of those who are housebound when needed.
Please quit making it sound like people can’t get the vaccine due to the schedule or locations…its simply not true.
One of the best posts in awhile. You are right. No more excuses.
Premier needs to announce an opening date (where vaccinated arrivals get little to no quarantine, as Bermuda announced). This is the last carrot and stick that can be put out there.
Yes because Bermuda with dozens of recent Covid deaths is definitely the model to follow.
So after June 9th, there will be thousands of adults who willingly decided not to take the free vaccine, and because of that we are to stay closed until 2022?
Of course, you may want to consider the data from Bermuda and the UK confirming the effectiveness of vaccines in protecting against severe illness and death. From 14 March – 1 May 88% of the positive cases in Bermuda were in unvaccinated individuals, 11% had received one shot, 1% had received both shots in less than 2 weeks before testing positive and there were NO infections in people that had received both shots and were 2 weeks out from the last jab. This information is very important to consider and it shows the vaccine is effective and necessary for us to get our borders reopen. It is not realistic to remain in an isolated bubble until Covid is vanquished.
💯 Great post! It’s so important to look at the details!!!!
Everyone talking about the positives in Bermuda as justification for us staying closed but not paying attention to unvaccinated vs partially vaccinated vs fully vaccinated.
Open it up to children 12-16. We will use up what is left. Many of us want to protect our kids too.
FDA about to make a decision on this very issue in the coming days.
Already expanded emergency use authorization to 12-15 year olds in USA….as of Monday. My child’s pediatrician contacted us to offer it.
Dr Lee just addressed this issue, as of last Friday, the FDA has approved the emergency use of the vaccine for 12-15 yr olds, and Dr. Lee fully supports this, but the problem being that the UK provides us with the vaccine and the rules for its use, and they have not yet given their approval. The UK is the hangup here for the 12-15 age group vaccinations.
It’s time. Very few people here that refuse to take the vaccine will get sick if very few cases enter the islands.
Open the island to fully vaccinated individuals.
Yes, yes and yes. The virus will be circulating globally for at least a couple more years and perhaps become endemic (similar to the flu) with continued low-level spread.
We wont get to a zero risk state, so at some point, need to open up to vaccinated.
Yes but how many are actually residents and not visiting sons daughters and grandparents who have now returned back to the UK 🇨🇦 and the USA. I can assure you the figure is very distorted because you turn up and are asked no questions.
The PPM a who started the programme did not have a clue who received the vaccine.
” you turn up and are asked no questions” – really? I went 3 times. First time was the day they said they had opened it to everyone – turned out that there was still a name day restriction and I got turned away. Second and third times were for my shots – had to show ID on both occasions. Your comment based on your personal experience or just something you heard and have accepted as true?
we had to produce our local id (cayman drivers license) with our local residence address and it was noted on the cards we filled out before receiving our vaccination. and work permit holders had to produce their passport with the visa dates on them.
Tundi, you must be listening to rumours, because the truth is that we had to produce proof of residency.
I know of five visitors to the island all were vaccinated and have now returned home. All they showed was there passport to confirm there name. they did not have to show any proof of residence and one was not asked for any id, so what Tundi says does hold some truth.
But then we also have no idea how many people actually live here either!
This is the biggest flaw with their plan! They’re trying to get to 80% of a number and they basically guessed at that number! 🤦🏻♀️
My understanding is that in the beginning anyone showing up, whether reside t or visitor was being vaccinated. People complained that individuals were coming here to get vaccinated and the practice was changed and proof of residency such as a Cayman Drivers license was required. When the uptake slowed the process was changed again and only a photo ID is/was required. Perhaps the CMO can provide number of residents actually vaccinated.
It doesn’t matter anymore, but a Cayman Drivers license was actually listed as an example of what does *not* count as a proof of residence. I had to bring my work permit as proof of residence (this is no longer required).
Keep it up! Let’s get that % up to where it needs to be to open.
problem is…government never said they would re-open if we hit the impossible 80% mark.
Better announce the opening date soon before everyone books their summer holiday elsewhere.
And before we all need a booster shot.
Here is a date to keep in mind, sometime in 2022 .
The ‘Open Border’ that Cayman enjoyed for decades no longer exists .
When we do allow travel, it isn’t going to look or feel anything like it once did.
Which translates to about 82% of the eligible population. Open the borders.
SO close yet so far…I’m hopeful that we’ll make it to 70%, but I don’t think we will…shame…
I agree, be prepared to closed until 2022. Held to ransom by the selfish minority.
and/or lazy
Oh i’m sorry I don’t want to willingly get a vaccine for a virus which started half way around the world and wasn’t contained properly because selfish know it all people like yourself put economy before caution.
You must be really smart since you apparently know more than all the of the medical experts saying the vaccine is safe and effective.
Damn joke. Take the damn plywood down.
The combined first dose people and those getting their second dose, I believe, came out to the 1,ooo number of shots.
Getting closer to opening the border….wasn’t the golden number 70%?
Until it gets changed
I think that was before the more contagious variants developed though. With these easier to transmit strains, I’ve read that 90% + is likely required to hit the optimum immunity level.
And once again the question is, if we don’t get to 80% then what? Do we stay closed for another year? People will have had nearly 4 months to get it at no cost to them. If they have not gotten it by June I’d say its pretty unlikely they will ever get it.
Can’t see us opening up until Sept/Oct by then most of the early vulnerable persons vaccinated may well need a boost, so will need to wait for them to come forward so opening pushed to 2022. Mark my words it’s all been planned already.
Kenneth was a bit slow on the first vacc’
18 active cases is the lowest for quite some time
Yes!
More and more of our visitors and returning residents have taken the vaccine so we expect these weekly numbers to go down.
It seems that the government website providing information on daily vaccine uptake has not been updated in almost a week. Is that a technical glitch or are the numbers bad?
https://www.exploregov.ky/coronavirus-statistics
Our new Ministers must be really excited waiting to see it they win any of the 500 prizes. The carrot certainly worked!.
They already got their prize – a post in government. Think they would be doing it if in opposition?
Think they would be getting vaccinated if they were in opposition?
I am glad that people are finally getting vaccinated but I am a little confused. The number reported here is 730 people getting the vaccine whereas the number in the other online news site says more than 1000. Big difference.
It is going to be interesting to see how many get vaccinated after Saturday. That will indicate whether the game show/media opportunity for politicians was a useful or just an expensive approach.
730 is the number of first shots over the weekend, total number of shots delivered (first and second) was over 1100.
About 400 people came for their second dose, not their first.