No vax slots available for 18-44 age group; struggle for 2nd dose continues in hosps
New Delhi: People trying to get their second dose of vaccination are facing difficulties with no slot available on the website. Multiple people have said that there are no slots available for people in the age group 18-44.
Aadil (29), who is a resident of Jamia Nagar, kept checking the website Sunday and Monday but could not get a slot. "I have been trying since two days, but no luck. I will try again tomorrow. I also called few of my friends and all of them are facing the same issue. It cannot be a website issue for sure," he said.
However, Supriya said that even when slots are being shown, they get filled very quickly. "The issue we faced initially with the vaccinations, it is the same case now," she said.
In private hospitals one kind of vaccination is available. At Fortis Hospital, Vasant Kunj branch second dose of Covaxin is available, while at Fortis Hospital Shalimar Bagh, "second dose with appointments only available". Only first dose is available at Fortis Hospital, Okhla, according to the hospital.
Meanwhile, at Apollo Hospital second dose of covishield vaccination is available. At Aakash Hospital run drive through only covishield vaccination is available. "Aakash Healthcare has begun vaccinating people between 18-44 years from last couple of days. We are vaccinating people for second dose as well. It is available at both on-site and drive-thru locations. We are vaccinating an average of 450 people on-site and 750 people in drive-thru at Vegas Mall. We are providing Covishield there. We are in touch with the government to procure more vaccines in the coming weeks and continue vaccinating people at both Vegas Mall and sites beside the hospital," Dr Aashish Chaudhry, MD, at Aakash Healthcare said.
Meanwhile, hospitals have also welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech where he announced that 25% of stock of manufacturers will be available for private hospitals.
"With a concrete plan on procurement and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across India, the new vaccine policy announced by the Prime Minister today will help us penetrate better into the masses. The fact that new vaccines are being approved, and many more are in advanced phases of trials will play an important role in addressing the ongoing shortage of vaccines. As of now, we are administering Covishield vaccine but will induct more as and when they become available," said Dr Aashish Chaudhry, MD, Aakash Healthcare, Dwarka
However, others have requested for the reconsideration of the cap charges on services set at Rs. 150. "We welcome the simplification of vaccination procurement and access to free vaccines for all citizens at government hospitals announced by the PM. We would urge that the vaccine prices for the private sector are reviewed downwards as well to enable expansion of access. Unfortunately, the cap of service charge at Rs 150 will not cover the additional costs incurred for such offsite vaccination camps which involve substantial costs like Ambulance, transport, extra staff and doctor, plus TDS involved in many cases," the statement from Fortis Hospital states.
