Dr. Ragbir: When we getting new Pfizer Vaccines?
Last week we saw the reopening of schools and the return of school officials and school children of all ages. We are returning to some semblance of normalcy. We as a nation have learned to adapt to the ever changing and permanent COVID-19 virus. However, we must not get complacent. We are here in this position due to the resilience and willingness to adapt we have shown as a nation.
The use of vaccines is paramount and our immunity as a nation must not waiver. The goal now is to remain and push forward in this period. We can only continue to do so if we continue to commit to vaccine consistency. Many of us have taken the initial two jabs which brought with it the advent of the first stages of normalcy. Many studies have shown that booster shots of these vaccines are necessary for the continued protection against the vaccine.
Within the last 3 months, Trinidad and Tobago have seen over seventeen thousand (17,000) new cases with hundreds of deaths as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic still persists despite the decreasing numbers. Vaccination is now as important as ever to continue this trend and to ensure safety and protection against the virus.
The Member of Parliament for Cumuto/Manzanilla notes that certain vaccines are necessary for certain demographics of persons that the other vaccines cannot service as effectively, such as the Pfizer vaccine for children and Pregnant women and the immunocompromised.
Trinidad and Tobago have not seen the newest shipment of Pfizer vaccines and the MP asks, on behalf of his constituents and to a larger extent, the rest of the nation when we are expected to get these vaccines. The longer we wait, the less we are prepared for this ever-present virus. The MP wants to remind the Minister of Health that the Government once moved very late to acquire vaccines and had to depend on the goodwill of our CARICOM neighbors to acquire vaccines and that will not be accepted this time.
The Member of Parliament for Cumuto/Manzanilla calls on the Government via the Minister of Health to act NOW. The Minister has been very silent and it is time to act. If the Minister of Health is unable to do the job he must go and GO NOW.