[imagesource: AFP/Patrick T. Fallon]

Today marks the start of what has been touted as Phase 2 of the vaccine rollout in South Africa.

I’ll hold off on popping bottles in celebration for now, given that there will be countless bumps down this road as a potential third wave looms, with bumps being a very euphemistic term.

There’s also vaccine hesitancy to deal with, especially among Afrikaans home language speakers.

Before we dive into the ‘but’ aspect of the headline, let’s deal with Dis-Chem and the rollout plans, as reported by Business Insider SA:

Pharmacy retailer Dis-Chem has been allocated the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine because it has the ability to keep the doses at the required ultra-low temperatures, the government says…

On Friday, Dis-Chem said it would be able to begin vaccinating the public during the week of 24 May, at 11 out of 32 vaccination sites it has managed to secure at critical locations across the country.

The vaccine needs to be stored at between -25°C and -15°C to ensure it stays stable, and if stored for longer than two weeks, it must be kept in an ultra-cold freezer at temperatures between -80°C and -60°C.

This is why the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will be administered at special vaccine sites, rather than at Dis-Chem stores.

Dis-Chem believes that if all runs smoothly, it should be able to vaccinate around 800 000 people a month.

According to the Department of Health, no COVID-19 vaccine recipient will be charged out-of-pocket.

There has been talk of a R70 admin fee, but that will either be charged to medical aid, should the recipient be covered, or to the state.

Clicks has also announced that it has been granted approval from the National Department of Health (DOH) to offer 47 vaccination sites nationally, whilst another 520 are awaiting registration approval.

More via BusinessTech:

…Clicks will offer the vaccinations as per the DOH supply, starting with the Pfizer vaccine.  The group’s wholesale division United Pharmaceutical Distributors (UPD) will store the Pfizer vaccines and transport them to the selected pharmacies.

Individuals who have registered on the DOH’s Electronic Vaccination Data System’s (EVDS) online portal will receive a text message from EVDS with a unique vaccination voucher for presentation at the vaccination site, along with their ID and medical aid details, if applicable.

You can also register via WhatsApp and SMS.

Right, time for the ‘but’. This again from BusinessTech:

…the first phase of the rollout is still not complete. The Sisonke academic study has so far vaccinated close to its 500,000 target, but the remainder of healthcare workers still need to be given the jab – around 500,000 people, to meet government’s initial target of one million.

Phase 1 has fallen well short of its target, and Phases 2 and 3 are a great deal more demanding when it comes to daily targets.

In fact, according to the recent National Income Dynamics Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey (NIDS-CRAM), South Africa will need to deliver 190 000 shots every single day to meet the 40 million vaccination target set for the end of February next year.

There are a number of issues that are causing concern among experts:

By [health minister Zweli] Mkhize’s own admission, no individuals registered on the system had been sent a notification for an appointment to get vaccinated, with provincial health departments putting the focus on old-age homes and care centres initially…

Of approximately 5 million South Africans over 60, only 1.1 million have actually registered on government’s system…

Only 130 of the 3 350 planned vaccination centres will be open from Monday – and that is for the remaining healthcare workers…

There have also been delays in acquiring the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, meaning our supply remains limited and “bottle-necked by periodic delivery times”.

Today, the plan is for 4 288 South Africans over 60 to be vaccinated at 87 vaccination sites, along with 7 707 healthcare workers.

The vaccine rollout will almost certainly be too late to stop a third wave, with City Press reporting that the national coronavirus command council is expected to meet this week:

…a member of the council told City Press that it would probably consider tightening restrictions, particularly regarding gatherings.

“Restaurants, nightclubs and other similar forms of entertainment have been identified by the ministerial advisory committee and provincial Covid-19 command councils,” said the source.

Day 417 of living under some form of lockdown, and having had months to prepare, our vaccine rollout appears to already be on the back foot.

It is no easy feat, and the logistics required to make it work require many moving parts, but we’re certainly not off to a great start.

[sources:businsidersa&bustech&bustech&citypress]