Vietnam Speeds Up COVID-19 Vaccination Program
2021-09-16
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1Vietnam is speeding up its COVID-19 vaccination program.
2The country's government hopes the effort will permit officials to loosen coronavirus restrictions in major cities by the end of the month.
3More than a million vaccine shots were given over the weekend in Hanoi.
4The capital city has been under a lockdown since July.
5About 5.5 million injections have been given in the country since vaccinations started in March, the Health Ministry said.
6Hanoi's mayor, Chu Ngoc Anh, said Sunday, "We have to speed up the vaccination program so we can make a plan to reopen the city."
7More than half of Vietnam's 98 million people are under lockdown.
8About 80 percent of the 5.7 million adults in Hanoi have received at least one shot.
9Officials aim to have 100 percent of the adult population at least partly vaccinated by the end of this week.
10However, the country's overall vaccination rate remains low at about 28 percent.
11Only 4 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated with both shots.
12Vietnam was able to keep its infection rate generally low until April of this year.
13At that time, it had only 35 reported deaths from the virus.
14And last year, it was praised for keeping the virus under control.
15But the delta variant of the virus has infected over 600,000 people and killed more than 15,000 in just four months.
16Vaccine shortages forced Vietnam to slow down its vaccination program
17Ho Chi Minh City, the nation's business center, is the most hard-hit area.
18Over 95 percent of adults there have received their first COVID-19 vaccine.
19But many people who need to come in for the second shot are not able to get it because of low supplies.
20To help deal with the shortage, the country's health officials have permitted combinations of different two-dose COVID-19 vaccines.
21Experts say this method is likely safe and effective, but researchers are still gathering data to be sure.
22Vietnam is currently using AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Sinopharm, a Chinese-made vaccine.
23I'm Ashley Thompson.
1Vietnam is speeding up its COVID-19 vaccination program. The country's government hopes the effort will permit officials to loosen coronavirus restrictions in major cities by the end of the month. 2More than a million vaccine shots were given over the weekend in Hanoi. The capital city has been under a lockdown since July. About 5.5 million injections have been given in the country since vaccinations started in March, the Health Ministry said. 3Hanoi's mayor, Chu Ngoc Anh, said Sunday, "We have to speed up the vaccination program so we can make a plan to reopen the city." 4More than half of Vietnam's 98 million people are under lockdown. 5About 80 percent of the 5.7 million adults in Hanoi have received at least one shot. Officials aim to have 100 percent of the adult population at least partly vaccinated by the end of this week. 6However, the country's overall vaccination rate remains low at about 28 percent. Only 4 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated with both shots. 7Vietnam was able to keep its infection rate generally low until April of this year. At that time, it had only 35 reported deaths from the virus. And last year, it was praised for keeping the virus under control. 8But the delta variant of the virus has infected over 600,000 people and killed more than 15,000 in just four months. Vaccine shortages forced Vietnam to slow down its vaccination program 9Ho Chi Minh City, the nation's business center, is the most hard-hit area. Over 95 percent of adults there have received their first COVID-19 vaccine. But many people who need to come in for the second shot are not able to get it because of low supplies. 10To help deal with the shortage, the country's health officials have permitted combinations of different two-dose COVID-19 vaccines. Experts say this method is likely safe and effective, but researchers are still gathering data to be sure. 11Vietnam is currently using AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Sinopharm, a Chinese-made vaccine. 12I'm Ashley Thompson. 13The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 14_________________________________________________ 15Words in This Story 16variant - n. something that is different in some way from others of the same kind