Health officials warned Sunday of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine deficiency.
They have told health care providers to use the hundreds of thousands of shots arriving in Israel in the next two weeks on those who received the first dose of the vaccine, Channel 12 reported.
Officials are concerned they will not have enough doses for the 1.5 million Israelis who have yet to be immunized. Talks are underway with Pfizer-BioNTech to increase the offering, the report said.
Receive the Daily Edition of The Times of Israel by email and never miss our top stories. Sign up for free
Shipments of Moderna shots will arrive in Israel this week and next month, but health officials said the quantities will be relatively small, according to Channel 12. The report said the warnings were not viewed as a fake emergency call intended to simulate a shortage. to encourage people to get vaccinated.
However, the Maariv daily reported that the Department of Health said the shipments of Pfizer-BioNTech will stop in about two weeks, but will not cause a shortage.
Health Minister Yuli Edelstein told healthcare providers that hundreds of thousands of Moderna shots will arrive in March. He said part of the shipment will be kept for vaccinating Palestinian workers entering Israel, and part will be for vaccinating people who have recovered from the virus, Ynet reported.
The Ministry of Health on Saturday recommended that those recovering from COVID-19 be vaccinated with one dose instead of two.
A health worker from Maccabi Healthcare Services will administer a dose of Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine to a woman in a van in Tel Aviv-Jaffa on Feb. 16, 2021. (JACK GUEZ / AFP)
The Palestinian Authority said on Friday that Israel agreed to vaccinate 100,000 Palestinians working in Israel, but unnamed Israeli officials told Ynet that no decision had yet been made.
The Ministry of Health said on Sunday that more than 4.2 million Israelis have received their first vaccination dose and more than 2.8 million have received the second, out of a population of 9 million.
About 3 million Israelis are not eligible for the virus, including most children under the age of 16.
The Department of Health said Saturday that coronavirus vaccines were “dramatically” effective and the latest data showed the shots were 98.9% effective in preventing death from COVID-19.
According to data from the ministry, the vaccine is also 99.2% protective against serious illness, reduces morbidity by 95.8% and reduces the risk of hospitalization by 98.9%.
The data release came as Israel reversed some of the key restrictions imposed in late December as part of a third lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19, allowing shops, gyms, hotels and other locations to reopen on Sunday morning for those who have been vaccinated or recovered from the virus.
The reopenings came amid a continued decline in morbidity, especially among high-risk groups, which is largely due to Israel’s rapid vaccination campaign.
There have been 44,728 active infections in Israel and 747,965 cases since the start of the pandemic, including 3,014 new infections recorded Saturday, the Health Ministry said.
The death toll was 5,569.
