Israel leads in vaccinations
Israel's vaccination drive is in high gear, operating seven days a week, 24 hours per day, including on the Sabbath.
Health Ministry director Hezi Levi said this morning that there are currently enough vaccines to immunize a significant segment of the Israeli population. Speaking with Ben Caspit and Yinon Magal on 103FM radio station, Hezi noted that the authorities are working to receive more doses. Israel has so far administered only the Pfizer vaccinations, with Moderna vaccinations expected to arrive to the country in the first quarter of 2021.
Hezi spoke shortly after the ministry announced a new daily record in coronavirus vaccination numbers: Sunday saw 98,916 shots administered, bringing the total number of Israelis vaccinated to 379,000. Per capita, Israel has just slightly passed Bahrain and most European countries.
Hezi said in the radio interview that the numbers are "nice achievements, but we all want to increase," adding that the health minister's directive is "to vaccinate about 150,000 a day — and I believe we will be able to achieve that."
Quite a few Israelis, including physicians, had expressed concerns over the safety of the vaccine, saying they did not intend to get vaccinated. But the numbers so far show that many Israelis are enthusiastic and eager to get it.
