Rouhani Orders “As Soon As Possible” Purchase of Coronavirus Vaccine

The head of government, noting news of some countries’ access to coronavirus vaccine, has asked the health minister to take action to purchase it as soon as possible. According to the Health Ministry statistics, as of September 30, 2020, 373,570 cases of coronavirus have been identified in Iran.

The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran on Sunday, September 30, in a conversation with the health minister, asked him to put necessary measures in place to prevent “fatigue and exhaustion” of medical staff on the agenda and, if necessary, take action to more quickly train new personnel and replace them.

More than six months after the official confirmation of the coronavirus outbreak in Iran, many officials have expressed concern about the exhaustion of medical care personnel and have asked citizens to more carefully follow health recommendations.

Alirezа Zali, commander of the coronavirus combat headquarters in the metropolis of Tehran on September 22, while warning about this situation said: “Comparative statistics show that Iran, the United States, and Russia are three countries where in absolute numbers, the rate of medical staff infection is higher in these countries.”

Zali told the Mehr News Agency that “the process of chronic fatigue” among medical staff reduces their body’s immunity and defense levels, and because of the “exhausting nature of COVID-19 disease,” people’s motivation to use protective equipment decreases.

Rapid Purchase of Coronavirus Vaccine Upon Production

According to the government information portal, Hassan Rouhani on Sunday, referring to published news about some countries’ access to coronavirus vaccine, ordered Saeed Namaki: “Take the necessary steps as soon as possible to purchase this vaccine and conduct routine testing and diagnostic phases so that, if possible, effective measures in this field in the country can be started as soon as possible.”

Currently, many companies and research institutions in different countries around the world have coronavirus vaccine testing and trials on their agenda. The first government approval for such a vaccine has recently been issued in Russia, but there are serious doubts about completing the necessary production stages.

The United States is considered one of the leading countries in research on coronavirus and producing a vaccine to counter it, and its President Donald Trump has repeatedly promised that this vaccine will be ready for distribution by the end of this year. However, many experts consider coronavirus vaccine production before 2021 to be unrealistic.

In Iran, the rate of infection and death related to COVID-19 has decreased for some time, and in the past two days, new cases per day have fallen below 2,000.

1,754 New Cases, 103 Deaths

The health ministry spokesperson announced at her September 30 press conference that in the past 24 hours, 1,754 new cases of coronavirus were identified and 103 people died from it.

According to Sima Sadat Lari, the total number of patients in Iran reached 373,570 and the number of COVID-19 victims reached 21,462. She said that despite a relative decrease in cases and deaths, 28 Iranian provinces still remain in a red and warning situation regarding the spread of coronavirus.

In recent days, due to Muharram mourning ceremonies and increased travel during the holidays of this month, concerns and warnings about a resurgence of the coronavirus outbreak have intensified.

Minu Mohajerani, a member of the National Committee to Combat Coronavirus, complained yesterday that in recent days, due to Muharram holidays, many citizens have preferred travel to staying at home.

Concerns About Coronavirus Intensifying Due to Travel

Mohajerani warned in a conversation with the IRNA news agency: “In the near future, due to extensive travel in these days, we will witness an increase and intensification of the coronavirus wave in the country.”

The ministers of interior and health, as heads of the security and health committees of the national coronavirus combat headquarters, have also shared this concern with the head of the twelfth government.

According to the government information portal, Hassan Rouhani, in response to these concerns, said: “Those who traveled during recent holidays should not allow their failure to follow protocols to cause another resurgence of COVID-19 and negatively affect the 24-hour laborious and exhausting efforts of medical staff in dealing with the second wave of the coronavirus outbreak.”

Photos and videos published on social media show that in many mourning ceremonies in recent days, health recommendations, particularly maintaining physical distance and wearing masks, were not properly observed, and the influx of travelers to northern cities has been very severe.

Source: DW