Free Covid-19 vaccinations in UAE reopened to all residents aged 16 and above

All residents of the UAE aged 16 and over can now begin booking their appointments for free Covid-19 vaccinations at any of the 205 designated vaccination centres across the country starting Sunday, March 21.

The country’s Ministry of Health and Prevention said on Saturday that the six-week priority given to the elderly and vulnerable category has now come to an end.

The ministry said however that while it is necessary for the general categories of individuals to book appointments prior to visiting a vaccination centre, the vulnerable categories can still receive their vaccinations on a walk-in basis.

Starting early February, vaccination centres across the UAE were prioritising inoculating those most at risk of the infection, including the elderly and people with chronic diseases, such as those with cardiac conditions, diabetes, and respiratory illnesses.

Dr. Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, said that 72.89 per cent of elderly Emiratis and residents and those with chronic diseases have been vaccinated against Covid-19 and that 56.59 per cent of the eligible population have been inoculated against the disease, reported state news agency WAM.

The UAE has to date administered 7,181,056 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, at a net distribution rate of 72.61 doses per 100 people.

The UAE has approved four Covid vaccines for emergency uses: Sinopharm; Pfizer-BioNTech; Sputnik V; and Oxford-AstraZeneca.

As of Sunday, the UAE reported a total of 438,638 infections, including 2,013 cases over the preceding 24 hours. The new cases were detected following 240,035 tests conducted to screen for it.

The total number of deaths in the country as a result of it stand at 1,433 and the number of recoveries number 420,736.