NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Police Staff Association (PSA) Executive Chairman Sergeant Sonny Miller said there is consensus among police officers, who will trust the advice of health officials, and take the coronavirus vaccine when it becomes available in The Bahamas.
In an interview with Eyewitness News, Miller said he expects to meet with Police Commissioner Paul Rolle sometime next week on the matter.
He also advised that health officials have provided the armed forces with regular updates on the matter, which has benefitted the association.
“We sent the information to our members and the most popular response was we are of the view that the persons in the medical field will have more of that information and if there is a need once the professionals — once again, the medical professionals and doctors — believe that it is safe and have the confidence in it, then we will follow suit,” Miller said.
“They are the ones who should know.
“They are the ones whom we rely on to get that type of information.
“So, it is just like when an offense is committed or some crime is committed, the doctors rely on us to give them the best resolution to that; so, in terms of the vaccine, we are relying on them to give us the best advice before we move forward with it.”
He continued: “The majority of the members feel that way and of course, you know, that’s what we go with.”
The Bahamas is expected to get access to a COVID-19 vaccine through the Pan American Health Organization’s COVAX Facility within the first quarter of this year, though that date has yet to be narrowed down.
Last week, Minister of Health Renward Wells said the government plans to order nine vaccine coolers in preparation for the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines in The Bahamas, and will have a vaccine facility that can hold up to 300,000 doses on New Providence and 50,000 doses on Grand Bahama.
The government has made a down payment to secure 80,000 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, which is expected to vaccinate 20 percent of the population when the vaccine becomes available in-country.
The United States’ vaccine program with Pfizer and Moderna continues to be ramped up under US President Joe Biden with his pledge to deliver 100 million injections in his first 100 days in office.
According to the University of Oxford, the US ranks fifth in the world in the number of doses administered relative to the country’s population, behind Israel, United Arab Emirates, Britain and Bahrain.
Last week, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said no new side effects linked to the coronavirus vaccine made by BioNTech and Pfizer were identified in the regulator’s first safety update on COVID-19 vaccines.
The frequency of allergic reactions was around 11 cases per million doses in the United States, but there was no comparable European estimate as yet.
The EMA authorized the Pfizer vaccine on December 21 and granted it a conditional license.
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