More than half of the Spanish population have now been fully vaccinated in four out of 17 regions.
According to the Spanish Ministry of Health’s vaccination campaign data published on Monday, an additional 1,166,638 immunisations were administered over the weekend.
This takes the total vaccines given to 43,959,621 million since the campaign began.
Figures now show that 19,135,448 people have been fully vaccinated against the virus accounting for 40.3 per cent of the population with the Spanish government setting a target of 70 per cent, to achieve “herd immunity”.
A total of 26,505,676 people (55.9 per cent of the population) have now received at least one dose of the vaccine and includes those who have been given the Janssen brand, which gives full protection with a single jab.
As the vaccination campaign continues at great speed, the younger age groups are now receiving their first doses. This comes as around 56.1 per cent of those aged 40 and over have already been fully vaccinated (88.1 per cent have received at least one dose) and 31.5 per cent of those in their 30’s have been given their first dose.
The vaccination programme is proving to be very effective, as the numbers of new confirmed Covid infections in the country, seem to overwhelmingly be in teenagers and young adults.
Data varies across the different regions of Spain, but across the board, the immunisation rollout is rapidly moving forward.
In Madrid 57 per cent of over-12’s have been given at least one dose of the vaccine, while in Asturias a massive 72.8 per cent have received theirs.
The percentage of those fully vaccinated across Spain varies significantly with Asturias boasting 53.8 per cent fully vaccinated compared to the Balearic and Canary Islands at the bottom with 41.5 per cent.
Asturias may be top of the table when it comes to rolling out the vaccines, however, other regions have also achieved vaccinating at least half of the population aged 12 and over including, Castilla y León (50.3%), Extremadura (51.3%) and Galicia (52.8%).
On Monday, the Ministry of Health published their latest figures which showed that a total of 3,866,475 cases had now been registered since the pandemic began. A further 23 deaths were added, bringing the total to 80,934.
It comes after a recent surge in the number of young people who have been infected with Coronavirus. Among those aged 20-29, the cumulative incidence rate now stands at 640 cases per 100,000 inhabitants - three times the national average, which currently stands at 204.
However, experts have warned that although the speeding up of the vaccination of younger groups can only be a positive thing, they warn that it will not have an immediate impact on the infection rates.
José Martínez Olmos, a professor in the Andalusian School of Public Health said, “After the vaccine is administered, time is needed to acquire immunity. We will not see the effect for a few months.”
Snr Olmos believes that other measures are needed such as “reducing the opening hours of nighttime venues, giving information to youngsters and educating them, and of course, vaccinating wherever possible.”
Source
https://spanishnewstoday.com/over_40_per_cent_of_people_in_spain_are_fully_vaccinated_against_covid_1612987-a.html
https://english.elpais.com/society/2021-07-06/only-five-regions-in-spain-are-vaccinating-20-29-age-group-despite-surge-of-coronavirus-cases-among-youngsters.html
Imaged Credit: Gobierno de Canarias