PLANS for vaccinating Scots against coronavirus are already “well advanced”, Nicola Sturgeon has said.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman is expected to make a statement to Holyrood later this week to set out details of a nationwide vaccination programme.
Up to 4.5 million adults across the country could get the injections at a mix of large vaccination centres and smaller, local ones, she said.
The First Minister and the Health Secretary discussed plans for a mass vaccination campaign at a meeting last week.
It comes as interim data from US firm Moderna suggests its vaccine could prevent 94.5% of people from getting Covid-19.
Sturgeon, speaking at the Scottish Government’s coronavirus briefing on Monday, said that vaccine is “in the mix” as part of the UK Government’s supply.
She added Pfizer’s vaccine – which announced trial results last week – is the one she expects to have “most supply of most quickly”, then another being developed by AstraZeneca.
“Our planning in Scotland for roll-out and delivery of the vaccine are well advanced,” the First Minister said.
“There are hurdles to overcome but there is every reason to be optimistic about this.”
READ MORE: Moderna Covid vaccine shows nearly 95 per cent protection against virus
Chief medical officer Dr Gregor Smith said there is now “real optimism that vaccines will offer a scientific means by which we can exit this pandemic”.
Freeman said her statement will reveal more details about when people might be able to start getting vaccinated and who will be the first in line.
She said: “We’ve been planning for some time in the hope of vaccines getting through the clinical trials and being approved to run a national vaccination programme for all adults in Scotland – so that’s about 4.5 million people.”
The programme will set out an expected timeline for delivery, with Ms Freeman saying it “is estimated at this point until we are sure when different levels of supply of the vaccine are going to come to us”.
READ MORE: Covid: Nicola Sturgeon responds to speculation about Level 4 restrictions
The Health Secretary added: “The plan will also set out who will be vaccinated first, taking the guidance of the Joint Committee on Vaccines and Immunisation, and also the various places where people will be able to get their vaccine and how we will let folks know when their appointments are coming up.
“Those places will be a mix of large vaccine hubs where we can put through large numbers of people but also more localised and perhaps mobile vaccination centres, particularly for our remote and rural communities.”
Speaking about the vaccination campaign, she said ministers and health bosses are “just waiting to be absolutely certain about the dates when we can kick it off and get going”.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel