6,000 foreign experts vaccinated in Binh Duong coronavirus hotspot

Binh Duong province, a major coronavirus hotspot in southern Vietnam, is set to administer COVID-19 vaccines to more than 6,000 foreign experts as part of the next phase of the national rollout of the vaccine.

A foreigner in Vietnam receives a COVID-19 vaccine shot

The latest stage of the vaccine campaign began on August 6 and will run to August 20 at My Phuoc General Hospital and Becamex International Hospital.

This phase will see 1,153 foreign experts working at various Japanese invested enterprises receive the AstraZeneca vaccine, while 313 people working at US-invested enterprises will get either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine shots.

In addition, 4,552 Chinese experts working at domestic and foreign enterprises will also get the Sinopharm shot.

Along with vaccinations targeting foreign experts, local authorities have deployed 177 teams to work at fixed and mobile vaccination sites to ensure inoculations for priority groups, including healthcare workers, on-duty soldiers and policemen at checkpoints, quarantine sites, and those who have already received their first shot.

The province will also inoculate people aged over 65, those with underlying health conditions, people living in areas hit by the virus, suppliers of food and essential goods, teachers, students, and freelance workers.

As of 6:00 on August 6, Binh Duong province, a major industrial complex hub in southern Vietnam, has recorded more than 22,000 COVID-19 cases since the resurgence of the virus three and a half months ago. About 144 patients have died of COVID-19 and other underlying illnesses.