Today, the Ministry of Health issued guidelines for vaccination against Covid-19 for people with comorbidities related to diseases, which include pre-existing conditions such as heart and lung problems, diabetic And arterial hypertension. The volume indicates that states and municipalities vaccinate these groups, separated by age groups.
As many cities across the country complete the application of at least one dose for the elderly, the issue of vaccinating people with comorbidities between the ages of 18 and 59 has become a problem. Yesterday, the government of São Paulo, for example, demanded a definition from the federal government.
As of today’s guidelines, the Ministry of Health had only set the estimated number of this group to be vaccinated at 17.8 million people, including 21 subgroups with comorbidities considered priority – in total, there are more than 50 diseases, among the pre-existing cases and syndromes.
Now, the briefcase headed by Minister Marcelo Quiroga indicates that states and municipalities are organizing vaccination campaigns for people with age-related comorbidities, from the oldest to the youngest.
The health guideline is that age groups are separated every five years, starting with people between the ages of 55 and 59. Then there will be those between the ages of 50 and 54, and so on.
The federal government has also indicated that the ideal model is for these people to be pre-registered with SIPNI (National Immunization Program Information System) or in some SUS (Sistema Único de Saúde) health units, but this suggests providing medical vouchers. At the time of vaccination if registration is not possible.
Despite federal guidelines, states and municipalities remain independent in setting their own vaccination schedules for COVID-19.
Ethnicity between priority groups
Given the scarcity of vaccines for the national campaign, which is moving at a slow pace, medical associations and societies are still trying to give some kind of priority to some diseases. Therefore, states and municipalities may not follow the breakdown by age group recommended by the health.
In addition to not setting priorities among a group of nearly 18 million people, the Ministry of Health has yet to respond to a request from the administration of São Paulo Governor Joao Doria (PSDB).
When announcing the start of vaccination for people with Down syndrome, immunosuppressive transplants and kidney failure on dialysis as of May 10, the São Paulo government complained about the lack of definitions by the health of the numbers of each subgroup of people with comorbidities, as well as the division of countries .
“When you look at PNI [Programa Nacional de Imunização]Regian de Paula, the vaccination program coordinator in São Paulo, said all comorbidities are present, but there is no percentage and age group for every state.
