40% of healthcare and frontline workers skipped second shot

Close to 40 per cent of over 16.49 lakh healthcare and frontline workers, who got the first dose of their vaccine, have skipped their second dose.

According to information provided by Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Amit Mohan Prasad, over 8.90 lakh healthcare workers in the state have got their first dose of the vaccine, but close to 3.05 lakh, or 34 per cent of them did not take the second dose. Similarly, out of 7.59 lakh frontline workers who got their first dose, over 3.50 lakh, or 46 per cent have skipped their second dose.

Before starting the second phase of vaccination on February 15, the state government had estimated to vaccinate over 15 lakh frontline workers, which include police personnel, homeguards, revenue officials, municipal corporation members, prison workers, civil defence, disaster management teams and paramilitary forces.

Making an appeal to more than 6.59 lakh healthcare and frontline workers who failed to get their second dose, Prasad said these people should immediately get the second shot as just one dose of the vaccine will not provide full immunity against the coronavirus. “Both the doses are needed and only then the antibodies will develop,” said Prasad.

Since the start of Covid vaccination in the state, so far over 46.75 lakh people have got their first dose of vaccine and over 9.90 lakh (21 per cent) of them have got their second dose too.