Vaccination of the elderly critical line of defense: China Daily editorial

That most deaths among those infected with the novel coronavirus are the elderly with chronic diseases suggests that they are the ones most vulnerable to the virus. So, whether this group is vaccinated to the highest rate possible is of great importance in the fight against the pandemic.

This is particularly so as the country is witnessing a new wave of infections mainly of the Omicron variant. The number of infections has increased to more than 100,000 nationwide in the past more than a month and the new cases are still on the rise on a daily basis. The more people that get infected, the greater the chance of the virus spreading community-wide.

Vaccines have proved helpful in preventing the infected from developing serious conditions and dying. But health experts have warned if the vaccination rate for the elderly is low, the rate of severe cases and deaths will be high.

Although many senior residents have had their jabs, the vaccination rate for such groups is not high in some regions. More than 50 million senior citizens have still not been fully vaccinated.

Some elderly residents with chronic diseases are afraid that the vaccine will cause side effects and may harm their health. Some believe that they stay at home most of the time and are therefore unlikely to get infected. They need to be better informed of the effectiveness of the vaccines and the benefits of getting vaccinated.

Since this vulnerable group has proved to be a weak link in the country's efforts to contain the spread of the Omicron variant of the virus, which has proved to be even more transmissible than previous strains, more efforts are needed to have as many senior residents vaccinated as possible.

Details make the difference. The work needs to be done in a detailed manner to screen senior residents with chronic diseases to see whether their particular diseases really prevent them from getting vaccinated. If not, they should be encouraged to get vaccinated as soon as possible. They also need to be reminded to heed the prevention and control measures.

For those senior residents who take it for granted that they have less chance of getting infected with the virus because they stay home most of the time, they need to be told that there is no need for them to take any chances, and the consequences could be serious if they get infected.

And for those senior residents living in remote rural areas, greater efforts are needed to make it easier for them to get vaccinated.

If anything, getting as many senior residents vaccinated as soon as possible will considerably consolidate the country's firewall against the pandemic.