Portugal To Get 22Mln COVID-19 Vaccine Doses From EU-Secured Supplies - Health Minister

MADRID (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th December, 2020) Portugal will be provided 22 million doses of coronavirus vaccines to cover the entire population from the total supply solicited by the European Union, Portuguese Health Minister Marta Temido said on Thursday.

"Portugal will receive 22 million vaccine doses," Temido said at a press conference, specifying that the supply will be provided under EU contracts signed with pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca, Sanofi, Johnson&Johnsen, BioTech, CureVac, and Moderna.

Some of these companies' candidate vaccines require two doses per person, but Portugal's share will still be enough to cover the entire of its 10 million population.

The first vaccination tier is expected to involve 950,000 people, commencing in January.

"The priority group includes people over 50 years of age with the following health conditions: heart, kidney and lungs, as well as health care workers," Francisco Ramos, the coordinator of Portugal's COVID-19 vaccination working group, said.

The second tier will cover 1.8 million people, including seniors aged above 65 and people from the 50-64 age group with certain health conditions. The rest of the population will be vaccinated within tier three.

As of Thursday, Portugal confirmed over 303,000 coronavirus cases, including 4,645 deaths and over 223,000 recoveries.