BENGALURU: With vaccination set to begin for those in the 18-45 age group from May 1, and registrations to open from April 28, the Karnataka government has decided to give first priority to healthcare and frontline workers.
BBMP Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta and health officials communicated this on Tuesday, after holding a meeting with experts and zonal and special commissioners. They said that according to the Central government, priority will be given to frontline, healthcare and Covid workers who are above 18 years of age, at all government vaccination centres.
Private vaccination centres will not be given the vaccine by BBMP or the government, they will have to procure them directly from manufacturers and administer them at government fixed rates only. Gupta said that BBMP officials will ensure that private hospitals adhere to the guidelines, a meeting on this will be held with private hospitals, and officials will ensure this with regular checks.
Gupta also pointed out that all private hospitals will have to ensure that test reports are generated within 24 hours, and the information is uploaded on the ICMR portal. At the virtual meeting, the chief commissioner directed medical and PHC officers to ensure that while collecting swabs, proper mobile number, address and pin code is collected. Checks should also be done on private labs so that results are uploaded on time, and BU numbers generated. If directions are not adhered to, then stern action will be taken against the officials and labs too.