COVID-19: ‘Malta is now vaccinating fastest in Europe’ – Deputy PM Chris Fearne

Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Chris Fearne has announced that Malta is now the fastest European country to inoculate its population against COVID-19.

Minister Fearne made the announcement on Wednesday evening via social media, where he shared a graph showing the “cumulative COVID-19 vaccination doses administered per 100 people,” showing Malta leading the pack in Europe, followed by Denmark, Lithuania, Spain, Slovenia and Italy.

The graph highlights that “this is counted as a single dose and may not equal the total number of people vaccinated, depending on the specific dose regime (e.g. people receive multiple doses”).

Malta’s COVID vaccination timeline:

First Group (to be vaccinated in January)

• Healthcare workers and long-term care facility workers (public and private sector)
• Persons living in long-term care facilities – elderly and mental health
• Persons aged 85 and over.

Second Group

• All other frontliners;
• Persons 80-85 years of age.

Third Group

• Persons with chronic illness whose state of health makes them particularly at risk- elevated risk of severe disease or death;
• Persons 70-80 years of age;
• Staff at schools and child-care centers.

Fourth Group

• Persons over 55 years of age
• Rest of population

The timing of the rollout will depend on the speed of production of the vaccine.