© MediaNews Group via Getty Images
The pilot project in Antwerp in which people can be vaccinated preventively against the monkeypox virus has had a slow start. The target was 1,120 people, but according to Flemish Minister of Health Hilde Crevits, only 130 people were registered on Thursday and only 60 people were actually registered to get their vaccine at the vaccination center. Additional vaccination options and ways to lower the threshold are being looked into.
Bron: BELGIAN
Although the number of monkey pox infections seems to have stagnated in recent weeks, new infections are still being added every week. In Flanders, 394 people have been infected with the virus since the start of the outbreak, mainly men in the age group of 20 to 59 years who have sex with men.
That is why a pilot project was started in Antwerp on Thursday in which people can be vaccinated preventively against monkey pox. The predefined target group is men who have sex with men and who have had at least 1 STI in the past year.
The pilot project aimed at 1,120 people, but that number will not be achieved for the time being. “Today, about 130 people have been registered and 60 people have effectively been registered to get their appenpox vaccine at the vaccination center in Antwerp,” says the Crevits cabinet.
The turnout is therefore much lower than expected. “We notice that working with a mandatory referral letter via the doctor or general practitioner may be a high barrier. We now want to make it as accessible as possible and investigate whether the target group can be expanded,” it sounds.
The cabinet is now looking at how and where even more people can be vaccinated at a later date.