Covid-19 | SSM taps into various incentives to boost vaccination rate

The government is considering the feasibility of lifting the Covid-19 test requirement, allowing fully-vaccinated participants to take part in low-risk crowd-
gathering events without being required to take the Covid-19 test, Dr. Tai Wa Hou, coordinator of the Health Bureau’s (SSM) Covid-19 Vaccination Operation, disclosed at yesterday’s media briefing.
“We hope that this measure can play as an additional incentive to prompt more locals to take the jabs,” Tai said.
As of now, the plan is still under consideration. However, the government is proactively examining its potential, he confirmed.
In addition, the mutual vaccine recognition mechanism shared between Macau and China, which may enable vaccinated residents to travel across the two places without the need to take the Covid-19 test, is “awaiting the approval by the Chinese government,” he added.

Outreach efforts
In previous vaccination outreach at the University of Macau (UM), the SSM has administered doses to over 1,500 people, against a total of 1,700 registrations.
“The difference between the two numbers was due to some no-shows and some individuals not [being] qualified to take the vaccine due to their health issues,” he explained.
The authorities will continue discussions with the UM to consider the possibility of hosting another outreach effort to offer second doses for the institution’s staff and students.
Tai also said that the SSM had already set the dates for outreach efforts with other institutions, such as the Macao Institute for Tourism Studies, City University of Macau, the Macao Polytechnic Institute and the Macau University of Science and Technology.
The next outreach, following the UM, will be held in the Macao Polytechnic Institute in the coming days, he added.

Over two-thirds of medical staff vaccinated
Around 66% of the city’s 7,000 medical staff have already been vaccinated, a tally Tai regarded as a “very high [figure] that already forges a herd immunity within the group of medical personnel.”
He added the main reasons for most medical staff to decide not to take the jabs are related to their health statuses, such as pregnancy or other chronic diseases which deem them not safe to receive the vaccines.