CanSino coronavirus vaccine: Age limit for single-dose jab changed in Islamabad

• Govt has slashed the age limit for a single dose of coronavirus jab from China's CanSino Bio by 10 years in the federal capital.
• The move will allow septuagenarian (people in their 70s) in Islamabad to get themselves vaccinated.
• NCOC chief says effects of stricter restrictions, wider lockdowns, and rigorous SOPs implementation starting to show results.

ISLAMABAD: The age limit for a single-dose jab of the coronavirus vaccine manufactured by China's CanSino Biologics Inc, or CanSinoBIO, has been slashed by 10 years in the federal capital, Geo Urdu reported.

According to the report, the age limit for the CanSinoBIO's single-dose coronavirus jab has been reduced from 80 to 70 years, meaning that septuagenarians in Islamabad may now get themselves vaccinated.

Asad Umar — the federal minister for planning and development, as well as the head of the National Command and Control Center (NCOC), Pakistan's nerve centre to monitor the coronavirus situation — said Tuesday the effects of stricter restrictions, wider lockdowns, and rigorous implementation of the COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) were starting to show.

Initially, the number of positive coronavirus infections had begun declining but cases at the intensive care units (ICU), as well as the mortality rates, could remain high for some time due to the situation over the past two weeks, Umar remarked.

Urging people to once again follow the SOPs and stay safe, the minister said more than one million vaccine doses have been administered across the country so far, while two million have registered for the coronavirus jab.

These two million registered individuals included 600,000 healthcare workers and 1.4 million people who were above 50 years of age.

"If you are over 50, register for the vaccine," Umar said.

The government of Pakistan has been administering two coronavirus vaccines — both Chinese — at the state level. These include the single-dose CanSinoBIO jab and the double-dose drug manufactured by the China National Pharmaceutical Group, or Sinopharm.

Apart from Islamabad, the CanSinoBIO vaccine is being administered only to people over 80 across Pakistan.