Industry organisation Business for South Africa (B4SA) has welcomed the Department of Health’s decision to allow 35- to 49-year-olds to register for their Covid-19 vaccinations from July 15 and to receive their jabs from August 1 onwards.

“The only way to fight the third wave, save lives, restart the economy and lift restrictions on our way of life is to vaccinate the nation as quickly as possible. Vaccinating everyone aged over 35 protects those most at risk from serious illness, hospitalisation and death due to their age and ensures the protection of the working-age population, which helps to manage the economic impact of the pandemic.

“We are also very pleased that the National Treasury and the Department of Health have agreed to release funds to ramp up weekend vaccinations in the public sector,” B4SA steering committee chairperson Martin Kingston says.

“We now need to quickly secure more vaccine supply so we have enough to meet demand. Business is working with government to cut red tape, secure more vaccines and bring many more hundreds of vaccination sites on stream in the coming weeks.

“With enough vaccine supply and all sites vaccinating seven days a week, we can reach our target of administering 300 000 jabs a day,” he adds.

B4SA called on everyone to register for vaccination as soon as they become eligible and to follow the scheduling instructions they receive.

“As Dr Nicholas Crisp highlighted in his presentation to the media today, people should not confuse registration with vaccination, and we urge people to wait to receive their appointments. This helps to ensure that supply matches the demand at individual sites,” he emphasises.

Kingston says some 1 400 workplace sites had expressed an interest in becoming vaccination sites. Of these, 90 had already obtained permits, 80 were prioritised sites with an employee base of more than 4 000 and the balance were in the process of applying and getting their permits.

However, he warns that it is vital to continue taking the necessary prevention measures to slow down the infection rate.

“The third wave is killing hundreds of people every day, so please continue to wear your masks, sanitise, maintain social distancing and ensure adequate ventilation. This is an airborne disease, so keeping windows and doors open, or staying outside can dramatically reduce your risk of contracting the virus,” he emphasises.