Minsa will require Vaccination Card for WYD

The Ministry of Health (Minsa) is gearing up for World Youth Day 2019, and the pope’s arrival. Minsa will require a vaccination card, this requirement will apply to anyone entering the country for the WYD event, January 22nd to January 27th, 2019.

The Minister of Health, Miguel Mayo, explained yesterday that foreign visitors need to have current vaccination cards with them. He added the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has been asked to make the new requirement, and have these requirements be known among foreign embassies.

It has been reported that WYD is an "international meeting organized by the Catholic Church for all young people, without distinction of sex, race or religion." So far, approximately 30,000 people have registered as participants for the event that will take place in Panama. The first "pilgrim" being Pope Francis. 

Mayo was interviewed yesterday, during the launch of the vaccination day, created in the effort to prevent the resurgence of measles. The coordinator of the "Expanded Immunization Program" run by Minsa, Itzel de Hewitt, said that the vaccination campaign "vaccination day" began Feb 28th and will last until March 28. If necessary the campaign will be extended until early April.  Hewitt estimates that before March 6, 10% of the population should be vaccinated.Parents are asked to visit health facilities of Minsa and the Social Security Fund (CSS) to apply for the vaccine. There will also be medical personnel doing fieldwork.

The representative of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Gerald Alfaro said that Panama has a "very good" vaccination coverage, which reaches 95%.  Alfaro stressed that this is a "door to door, face to face" vaccination day will take the ministry to place with limited access.