[imagesource: Anwar Amro / AFP – Getty Images]

The latest COVID-19 stats, released last night, are worrying, to say the least.

13 246 new cases had been recorded in the previous 24 hours, at a positivity rate of 21,7%.

Gauteng alone accounted for 7 859 of those, and our national total represents the highest number of daily cases and positivity rate recorded since January 2021, according to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD).

Whilst our COVID-19 vaccine rollout has thus far been painfully inadequate, those over the age of 60 are currently in line to receive the jab.

The main question on everybody’s lips, for the moment, at least, seems to revolve around whether or not one should wait for the SMS to arrive after registering, with details of your appointment, or simply walk into a vaccination site after registering and hope for the best.

Bhekisisa has laid out clear answers to some of the more pressing questions (who can register and how to register, for example), but let’s focus on whether it’s worth walking into a vaccination site.

Can you?

Yes — but only if you are in the current qualifying category set by the department of health. At this time that only applies to people over the age of 60. It is up to the vaccine site manager to decide if they will accept walk-in vaccinees on a particular day.

But accepting walk-ins does come with a few rules:

• Those with scheduled appointments are first up to get a shot. Site managers need to make sure that there is enough stock for scheduled appointments to be vaccinated before they allow walk-ins to get the jab.

• Even if you’re a walk-in, you still have to be registered on the EVDS. Should you arrive without registering, the site must first sign you up on the system before you can get a jab. Don’t forget to bring a proof of age in the form of your ID book, passport or driver’s license.

• You are not guaranteed to get a vaccine on the day you walk in and may be asked to return on another day depending on the capacity of the site on that day.

• Sites are encouraged to have a separate queue for walk-ins so that scheduled appointments can be prioritised.

Some sites are likely to have shorter waiter times than others, but those principles above must be adhered to.

If you don’t have medical aid, and walk into a private sector site, you will likely be told to go to a public sector site such as a government hospital.

More from Bhekisisa on that front:

Image: Bhekisisa

Head here to register, if you haven’t yet, and read the full Bhekisisa report here.

For those of us under the age of 60, the best we can do is assist others in registering for the vaccine, as well as try and help them wade through the seemingly endless wave of disinformation doing the rounds.

[source:bhekisisa]