Sputnik V sees lower registration rate than expected

Earlier this week, Slovakia opened the registration for vaccination with the Russian Sputnik V vaccine. On Wednesday, only 3,000 people were registered. Health Minister Vladimir Lengvarský (an OĽaNO nominee) confirmed that Slovakia has already paid for the 200,000 doses of the vaccines delivered in March. Sputnik V is to be used in Slovakia on the basis of a modified permit from Lengvarský's predecessor Marek Krajči (OLaNO). Meanwhile, around 100,000 people are waiting for vaccination, mostly in north-western Slovakia. Regarding the low level of interest in vaccination in some regions, Health Minister said that if people are not showing an interest in vaccination, it must be made easier for them to acquire it, e.g. through general practitioners. More than 1.7 million people in Slovakia have received at least the first jab, which is 38 percent of the population over the age of 16.