Tag: filipce
Macedonia 20.08.21 | 17:41

Filipce: Government believes classes should be held in-person

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce said that the Government remains firm in its recommendation that all school age children attend classes in person, even as the number of infections and deaths from the coronavirus continues to grow quickly. Filipce said that the Government will follow the situation and...

Macedonia 18.08.21 | 17:10

Minister Filipce says parents will be able to require that their children attend school online

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce said that parents will be allowed to withdraw their children from schools if they are concerned because of the coronavirus pandemic. School is supposed to begin on September 1st, and the Education Ministry plans to offer in-person teaching, after having online education...

Macedonia 28.07.21 | 09:43

Healthcare Minister Filipce calls on the young to get vaccinated

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce attended a meeting of his SDSM party where he asked young people to get vaccinated. Filipce insisted that there are several good quality vaccine options available and that the young should use the chance to get vaccinated. Macedonia is lagging badly behind in vaccination,...

Macedonia 23.07.21 | 22:50

Filipce: Almost one percent of the population were vaccinated in one day

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce said that the vaccination rate is picking up, and that “almost one percent of the population was vaccinated today”. Macedonia has outdated population statistics, but Filipce is probably referring to a number of about 20,000 doses. Normally, on a good day,...

Macedonia 14.07.21 | 12:09

Government plans to introduce Covid passports for mass events

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce announced that in autumn he will recommend that only vaccinated  citizens will be allowed to attend events, such as movie screenings , sports or cultural events.  Filipce said that interest for vaccination is dropping with the decline in the number of active cases,...

News 12.07.21 | 12:59

Minister Filipce says there is no need for new corona restrictions

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce said that there is no need to introduce new restrictions after the spread of new strains of the coronavirus in Macedonia. This comes after the opposition VMRO-DPMNE party called for testing at the border. The situation is really calm. We are focusing on vaccination as...

Macedonia 11.07.21 | 22:00

“Where are the announced Pfizer and Sputnik vaccines?”

VMRO-DPMNE official, doctor Oliver Zafirovski, called on the Healthcare Ministry and Minister Venko Filipce to explain what happened with the announced procurement of large quantities of Pfizer and Sputnik vaccines. Macedonia is currently reduced to using mostly Sinovac vaccines, which have a lower efficacy...

Macedonia 10.07.21 | 15:04

The unusually large number of infections in children in Gevgelija is not caused by the coronavirus, Minister Filipce claims

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce assured parents in Gevgelija that the unusually large number of children who have respiratory issues in summer is not linked with the coronavirus. About five dozen children were treated over the past month for respiratory infections. Most of the cases were not difficult,...

Macedonia 22.06.21 | 13:15

Vaccination rates remain very low as the vaccine shortage continues

Only 2,683 citizens received the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine yesterday, as Macedonia continues to face a major shortage of vaccines. Macedonia remains the worst performer in vaccination in the region, and ranks between 80th and 90th in the world. The speed of vaccination has dropped tremendously...

Macedonia 19.06.21 | 17:17

Minister Filipce finally acknowledges the vaccine shortage

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce acknowledged that the mass vaccination process in Macedonia has stopped because of the lack of vaccines. The Boris Trajkovski sports hall in Skopje will be closed for several days and serious work will resume only at the end of the month, when is the next deadline for...

Macedonia 16.06.21 | 16:39

Only 5,600 vaccines were given yesterday

The slow vaccination rate continued yesterday, with only 5,611 doses issued. A total of 3,606 citizens received the first dose, and the rest were booster shots. Macedonia faces a major shortage of vaccines, which greatly reduced the speed of vaccinations, which hit 15,000 a day at its peak. Odds are...

Macedonia 14.06.21 | 09:34

First dose vaccines available only “if you know the right people”

Macedonia is set to receive a batch of about 10,000 Pfizer doses today, but other than that, the country has few vaccines on stockpile for first dose vaccinations. Because of the unreliable deliveries, the doses for booster shots are kept in reserve, and the Ministry practically only vaccinates citizens...

Macedonia 01.06.21 | 11:38

Minister Filipce admits that Macedonia ran out of first-dose vaccines

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce acknowledged that Macedonia ran out of vaccines and said that the expected deliveries of Sputnik and Sinovac vaccines are still uncertain. The vaccination centers are currently focused only on the mandatory second dose for citizens who were already vaccinated once. Ten...

Macedonia 29.05.21 | 14:32

Issuing of first doses greatly reduced as Macedonia faces a vaccine shortage

The Healthcare Ministry informed that only 2,411 citizens received the first dose of the coronavirus vaccine yesterday – this is down from about 10,000 in past days. Unsure of future deliveries, Macedonian healthcare authorities are keeping over 200,000 doses for booster shots for citizens who...

Macedonia 28.05.21 | 17:13

Macedonia ran out of vaccines

Macedonia is about to run out of vaccines. Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce informed the public today that the Ministry only has 10,000 doses meant for the first shot left. There is a large stockpile of 230,000 doses remaining, but these are meant as second shots for citizens who received the first...

Macedonia 21.05.21 | 16:00

Macedonian citizens vaccinated abroad will get an electronic certificate

Macedonian citizens who get vaccinated in other countries will still get a domestic electronic certificate of vaccination, said Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce. Previously, he rejected their demand that Macedonia provides the second dose of their vaccine. About 15,000 Macedonian citizens have been...

Macedonia 21.05.21 | 10:35

Macedonia will begin issuing antibody certificates next week

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce announced that Macedonia will begin issuing a QR certificate of vaccination starting next week. The certificate could be used as evidence that the carrier is fully vaccinated, or has sufficient antibodies after going through the infection. This program could be part...

Macedonia 16.05.21 | 12:54

Vaccination proceeds thanks mainly to Chinese deliveries

After loud criticism in the public that young people are being vaccinated ahead of line, Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce insisted that all citizens over 40 years from Skopje, who registered until April, have been given vaccination dates. The pace of vaccinations of about 14,000 a day is expected to...

Macedonia 15.05.21 | 13:35

Number of citizens who registered to take the vaccine doubled since April 30th

The number of citizens registering to take vaccines doubled after April 30th, said Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce. Until then the number of registered citizens stood at 140,000, but in the meantime, 150,000 more registered. Filipce said that vaccination will continue along age groups. Only some 9,000...

Macedonia 10.05.21 | 16:41

Minister Filipce defends his decision to order 500,000 doses of the Sinovac vaccine

Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce insistied that the efficacy rate of the Sinovac vaccine is 70 percent, not 50 percent as is often reported. Filipce tried to defend the decision to order 500,000 doses of this vaccine which many are worried will just lull the recipients into a false sense of security. Demand...

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