As registrations for all adults to get vaccinated against Covid-19 begin from April 28 on CoWIN platform, RS Sharma, CEO, National Health Authority, shares key insights with Money9 on how the next phase will pan out.
Edited excerpts:
Q. What changes can one expect on the CoWIN platform from April 28?
Sharma: Liberalised vaccination policy will be implemented from May 1. The participation of private hospitals and the number of sectors has been increased considerably. They can now procure directly from the vaccine manufacturers. The number of people to be vaccinated will also go up substantially and so will be the vaccine availability. We have made necessary changes on the CoWIN platform to accommodate the much larger number of registrations that will begin from tomorrow. Now the private sector will also begin charging different prices for the vaccines beginning May 1, so the app will reflect the price of the vaccines too.
Q. Will walk-ins be permitted or only pre-registrations work?
Sharma: We have always recommended that one must get registered to avoid crowding and make it convenient for, both, the hospitals and people. Previously, in case there were vacancies available in slots and if capacities were being under-utilised, then walk-ins were being allowed post 3 pm. This will continue even post May 1 for people over 45+ people. However, it is not advised for 18+ to walk-in as that will overwhelm a hospital’s capacity. From management’s perspective and to follow social distancing norms, registrations are advisable. Later we can see if walk-ins for 18+ can be accommodated, we can revisit this.
Q. Will citizens get to know which vaccine is available at a particular centre?
Sharma: While government hospitals will work as before and we won’t be able to declare which vaccines are available there, for private hospitals for paid vaccinations it will be mandatory to declare the vaccines they have along with the price they are offering them at. Hospitals will have to onboard themselves on CoWIN to declare the timings of vaccinations, capacities they have, the vaccines available with them, prices and time slots. Information will be provided by healthcare facilities.
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