NEW DELHI, Apr 22: Registration for vaccination against COVID-19 for all those aged above 18 will begin on the CoWIN platform and Aarogya Setu app from April 28, officials said today.
The inoculation process and documents to be submitted to get the jab remains the same as before.
The Central Government had announced that the vaccination for those above 18 years will begin across the country from May 1 as part of the third phase of the inoculation drive.
“It is clarified that #CoWin portal will be made ready for 18+ beneficiaries by 24th April. Registrations for 18+ citizens to book appointments (from 1st May) will begin on 28th April,” the Union Health Ministry tweeted.
From May 1, the present system of private COVID-19 vaccination centres receiving doses from the Government and charging up to Rs 250 per dose will cease to exist and private hospitals will procure directly from vaccine manufacturers.
According to the Liberalised Pricing and Accelerated National COVID-19 Vaccination Strategy, COVID-19 vaccination will continue to be free for eligible population groups comprising healthcare workers, frontline workers and people above 45 years of age in Government vaccination centres, which receive doses from the Government of India.
Vaccine manufacturers would make an advance declaration of the price for 50 per cent supply that would be available to State Governments in the open market before May 1.
Based on this price, States, private hospitals, industrial establishments may procure vaccine doses from manufacturers.
Private hospitals would have to procure their supplies of COVID-19 vaccine exclusively from the 50 per cent supply earmarked for other than the Government of India channel.
“While the Centre has liberalised the vaccination policy, it does not mean that vaccines will be sold in pharmacists or chemist shops in the open market,” Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had clarified on Wednesday.
The price charged for vaccination by private hospitals would be monitored, he said.
“The present dispensation where private COVID vaccination centres receive doses from the Government and can charge up to Rs 250 per dose will cease to exist,” the Union Health Ministry said. (PTI)
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