India’s second phase vaccination drive begins tomorrow

As India gears up to vaccinate people above 60 years of age and those over 45 years with comorbidities against COVID-19 from tomorrow (March 1), the Union Health Ministry on Friday said the facility of on-site registrations will be available so that eligible beneficiaries can walk into identified vaccination centres, get themselves registered and get inoculated.

The beneficiaries will be able to self-register in advance by downloading the Co-WIN 2.0 portal and through other IT applications such as Arogya Setu etc which will list the government and private hospitals serving as COVID-19 vaccination centres (CVCs) with the date and time of the available schedules. The beneficiary would be able to choose the CVC of his/her choice and book an appointment for immunization, the ministry said.

Vaccination will be free of charge at the government vaccination centres. Those taking the COVID vaccine at any designated/empanelled private health facility will have to pay a pre-fixed charge, it said.

People who want to take Covid-19 vaccine shots at private hospitals will have to pay upto Rs.250 per dose for the vaccine from Monday.The Union Health Ministry has capped the price of Covid-19 vaccine for private hospitals. As per the ministry, the Rs 250 will include the cost of vaccine (Rs 150) plus service charges (Rs 100).

All people aged above 60 will be able to get Covid-19 vaccine shots free of cost from over 10,000 government vaccination centres.

How to register for Covid-19 vaccination?

In order to register for COVID-19 vaccination, there are three options: (1) self-register online in advance, (2) onsite registration at government/private facilities, and (3) facilitated cohort registration.

From March 1, online advance self-registration for Covid-19 vaccination can be done by downloading Co-WIN 2.0 mobile app and through the Aarogya Setu app.

These apps will show all government and private hospitals that are serving as Covid-19 vaccination centres (CVCs).

The apps will also show details of date and time of the available vaccination schedules.
People who are eligible for vaccination in this phase will be able to choose the CVC of their choice and book an appointment for vaccination.

In case you want to opt for on-site registration, you can walk into any identified vaccination centres and get yourself registered and vaccinated.

Under the facilitated cohort registration mechanism, the state and UT government will take proactive lead in registering people for vaccination.

Besides, specific date(s) for Covid-19 vaccination will be decided where target groups of potential vaccine beneficiates will be inoculated. State and health authorities will ensure that the target groups are actively mobilised and brought to the vaccination centres.

Which hospitals will serve as vaccination centres?

The Union Health Ministry has instructed states and Union Territories that all government Covid-19 vaccination centres must be health facilities like sub-health centres (SHCs), primary health centres (PHCs), community health centres (CHCs), Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres, Sub-Division Hospitals, District Hospitals and Medical College Hospitals.

In case of private hospitals, only those hospitals that are empanelled under the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS), Ayushman Bharat- Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) and similar state health insurance schemes will be allowed to serve as Covid-19 vaccination centres.

Documents to carry for vaccination

All people, irrespective of how they have registered for the vaccination, will have to carry any one of the following photo identity documents:

• Aadhaar Card
• Electoral Photo Identity Card
• Photo ID card specified at the time of registration in case of online registration (if not Aadhaar or EPIC)
• Certificate of co-morbidity for citizens in age group of 45 years to 59 years (signed by a registered medical practitioner)
• Employment certificate/Official Identity Card for healthcare workers (HCWs) and frontline workers (FLWs).

I am 45-plus with comorbidity. What certificate do I need?

As per the directions of the Union Health Ministry, people who are in the age group of 45-59 years and have comorbidity, will have to produce a ‘comorbidity certificate’ in order to get vaccinated for Covid-19.
This certificate will have to be signed by a certified medical practitioner.

The central government has provided a format for this certificate (below) and explained its modalities to the states and UTs.

The certificate can either be uploaded on Co-WIN2.0 app by the beneficiary while self-registering or a hard copy of it can be carried by the person to the Covid-19 vaccination centre.