Key Points From the Ministry of Health’s Virtual Media Conference – Saturday November 27th 2021
- Professor of Virology, Dr. Christine Carrington discussed the latest variant of concern, Omicron and indicated that reports show that it is displacing the Delta Variant in the countries that it is spreading in.
- Professor Carrington indicated that preliminary evidence of Omicron’s mutations show that it has an increased rate of transmission has a reduced sensitivity to vaccines and a higher rate of reinfection.
- Professor Carrington made it clear that it is not a question of if Omicron will arrive in T&T but when and advised the population to take the necessary steps to protect themselves. This includes vaccination, as it still offers significant protection against severe disease.
- Minister of Health, Terrence Deyalsingh stated that a social media post that announced that booster shots of AstraZeneca were available to the public at the Queen’s Park Savannah is false, Minister Deyalsingh indicated that booster shots are only being made available to immunocompromised persons.