Brazil unveils vaccination program in international border areas
By December, 33 Brazilian municipalities that share land or river boundaries with cities in other countries will have their vaccination schemes reinforced. Brazil’s Ministry of Health launched a program Monday (Sep 12) to improve immunization in cities across ten states. The target population in these municipalities adds up to some 1.34 million.
The plan will be implemented in the states of Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, Rondônia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Paraná, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, and Rio Grande do Sul. These states are home to the 33 municipalities with counterparts in Argentina, Bolivia, Guyana, French Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. The countries and municipalities sharing these borders were invited to join the initiative.
Brazil is said to have 588 municipalities on its border strip, corresponding to 16.7 percent of the Brazilian territory. Of these, 33 are referred to as twin cities because they are demarcated by a land or river boundary.
The goal is to bring immunization rates across all age groups in these locations up to par. Both the people residing in Brazilian municipalities and foreigners living in the country are expected to receive the following vaccines: polio, triple viral, COVID-19, yellow fever, pentavalent, and pneumococcal-10.
The program lasts until December 16, as per the official schedule.
