Prime Minister Andrew Holness has declared that the Jamaican Government will not act hastily in giving clearance for the distribution of an approved COVID-19 vaccine.
He said on Tuesday that local health teams will conduct appropriate checks before granting approval to administer the vaccine, pointing to the role of the Ethics Committee in the Ministry of Health & Wellness as a major contributor to this process.
He confessed that he has tried to nudge the professionals in the ministry to “look at these things with a bit more willingness to accept and absorb,” but nevertheless conceded that, in their reticence, “they maintain a very high standard and they also align their approvals with that of the highest authorities on these matters in the world – WHO and PAHO…”
Accordingly, he declared that the government is not “taking any risks with the health of our people.
Mr. Holness reiterated that, once there is a safe COVID-19 vaccine, the government will make it available, free of cost, to all Jamaicans.
