Bulgaria’s Health Minister: Everyone who wants a second Astra Zeneca dose will receive it

Everyone in Bulgaria who had a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine against Covid-19 can receive a second dose of the same vaccine if they want to, Health Minister Kostadin Angelov told reporters on April 13.

He added that at expert level, everyone was confident in the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine.

Those who do not want - for them it will be decided what the second dose can be replaced by the available vaccines in the country - with the vaccine of "Pfizer" or that of "Moderna". An expert council will give an opinion on which vaccine to be given.

The roll out of second Astra Zeneca doses will begin by the end of the month and until then there will be clear messages, Angelov said, adding that they receive many signals in the Ministry of Health from people who want a second dose of Astra Zeneca vaccine.

According to him, the electronic register for vaccination will be fully operational in May.

The Minister spoke to journalists in front of the building of BulBio in Sofia, where representatives of regional health inspections received further quantities of Remdesivir, a medication currently used to treat Covid-19 patients. He said that 8000 doses of the medication had been distributed and there were 15 000 in the state-owned BulBio warehouse.The country has enough to meet its needs.

“We are concerned about the reports about the "Johnson and Johnson" vaccine in the United States, we are waiting for an opinion from the European Medicines Agency,” Angelov said. This opinion was expected by the end of the day, after which a decision will be made on how to proceed with this issue.

In all districts there is a slight decline in morbidity, the minister said.