Mumbai: Shortage to delay Covid-19 vaccine sessions at hsg societies

A citizen is given Covaxin at Saifee Hospital, a private facility. File pic/Bipin Kokate

The civic body's decision to allow housing societies to hold their own vaccination sessions has set off a mad rush among societies to secure doses from their members. While many are contacting private hospitals to buy shots, doctors said the programme is unlikely to take off soon due to stock scarcity.

Sources said private hospitals themselves are struggling to buy vaccines from manufacturers directly as the priority is to give the jabs to the Centre and the states.

Since the vaccine makers are working overtime to fulfil government orders, the vials won't reach private hospitals anytime soon, said doctors.

The BMC has said that big housing societies and companies can hold drives on their own premises by roping in private hospitals.

The BMC had engaged 70-odd private hospitals when the vaccination drive began in Mumbai and was supplying them with vaccines. Since the Centre said that they can procure their own doses, the civic body stopped giving away its stock and started to open more public facilities to carry out the drive.

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Private hospitals are upset that the BMC has ignored them for the drive.

The chief coordinator of private hospitals in the city, Dr Gautam Bhansali, said, "We are struggling to get our doses from the manufacturers directly and so we have asked the civic body to include us in the drive as well and should also give private hospitals vaccines instead of opening new centers only. Many of us have already started getting calls from the companies and societies to partner with us to hold a drive with them but we cannot do anything."

Dr Bhanusali added, "We have also informed the BMC that we are even ready to administer the jabs free or at whatever cost it decides but we have not yet got any reply from them." While the BMC has floated a global tender, which may pave the entry of other vaccines in the city, sources said it may not share the jabs with private hospitals.

Citizens aged 60+ can walk in today, tomorrow

The BMC will conduct the vaccination drive on Tuesday, May 18 and Wednesday, May 19 and as per the new Central Govt guidelines, the second dose will be given only to those who have completed at least 12 to 16 weeks after the first dose of Covishield. Therefore, citizens in the age group of 60 and above will be eligible for the second dose after May 24. BMC has decided that for the first dose of Covishield on both May 18, 2021 and May 19, 2021, citizens aged 60 years and above can walk-in without appointments. Further, some centres affected by the cyclone will be closed today. The list of centres operating will be put up on social media late tonight.

70
No. of private hospitals initially roped in by BMC