Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1404527
2 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 25 AUGUST 2021 2 NEWS LAURA CALLEJA MALTA has achieved the im- pressive milestone of fully vacci- nating 90% of those aged 12, and up against COVID-19, Health Minister Chris Fearne said on Tuesday. Speaking during the launch of a health clinic in Kalkara, Fearne said 792,000 vaccine doses have been administered so far as he urged those able to take the vaccine to do so. He said that 90% of people who contracted COVID and were critical did not take the vaccine. There are currently 37 people recovering from COV- ID at Mater Dei Hospital with two receiving care at the ITU. Fearne said the world was currently being ravaged by the Delta variant, which first orig- inated in India, however, he stressed that Malta has a strong vaccination programme. He said that 60,000 people had been vaccinated through the walk-in clinics and that 320,000 vaccine certificates had been downloaded so far. The Health Minister also announced that from 13 Sep- tember, booster doses of the COVID-19 would be given to vulnerable groups and those in elderly homes. Fearne ex- plained that at this stage, how- ever, those who had to get the third vaccine and do not get it will still be able to download the vaccine certificate. Meanwhile, 35 new cases of COVID-19 were registered overnight, while 40 patients recovered. However, a 65-year- old man passed away during the last 24 hours while positive for COVID-19. Standing events Fearne announced that from 6 September, standing events could take place for groups of up to 100 persons who are fully vaccinated. The health minister said this was after consultations with the Arts and Entertainment In- dustry Association. Reopening of schools Fearne said that the push now would be for students to attend in person; this includes sixth forms and universities. The health minister also said that while protocols are in place to protect the health of students and teachers, the success of the vaccination pro- gram should also be reflected. Fearne however did not give a timeline for when propos- als regarding the reopening of schools would be published. Meanwhile, the Nationalist Party is urging the government to publish clear guidelines gov- erning the reopening of schools in September. During a press conference, the party's education spokes- person Clyde Puli said the reo- pening plan must be drafted in consultation with stakeholders while giving enough time to ed- ucators to prepare their plans for the scholastic year. "Let's not end up in a situa- tion where we had strikes and industrial actions, the type of which we hadn't seen for ages in the sector," he said. Julie Zahra, a PN candidate, reiterated that government must not only publish the rele- vant guidelines but also specify how they will be implemented in schools. "It's not a partisan argument, it's in the interest of our coun- try," she stated. Another PN candidate, Clif- ford Zahra Fenech, listed sev- eral questions that should be addressed by the government's reopening plan, such as the use of social bubbles or who would be considered a close contact when a student or teacher con- tracts COVID-19. "What plans are there for vaccinated and unvaccinated students and staff?" he asked. "What will happen in schools that use the roster system?" He further questioned the plans in place for subjects such as PE, music and drama, and whether parents or guardians will again be able to choose whether to send their students to school. He asked whether outings will be allowed again, wheth- er higher-level education will adopt online learning or a hy- brid formula, and what aspects of education could be affected by the Delta variant. "These are the questions be- ing asked in the silence of their [educators', parents'] homes," he said. Malta's COVID-19 vaccination rate hits 90% of eligible population, Health Minister says Health minister Chris Fearne AN 18-year-old Colombian woman sustained grievous injuries after she was run over by a car in St Julian's. The accident happened on Tuesday at around 12:45pm, the police said in a statement. She was run over by a Citroen van driven by a 41-year-old man from Fgura. A medical team and Civil Protec- tion officers had to extract the teen- ager from beneath the vehicle. She was taken to Mater Dei Hospital and certified to have sustained grievous injuries. Police investigations are ongoing. Teenager grievously injured after being run over in St Julian's