Paid flu jabs have all but run out in pharmacies. There are enough free doses for at-risk groups
A month after the flu vaccination campaign began, pharmacies have almost no paid vaccine left. Notícias ao Minuto rang some twenty pharmacies in the Porto and Lisbon areas, the Algarve and the Alentejo, and found no paid doses anywhere (Notícias ao Minuto). A pharmacy in the Lisbon district of Carnide received nine such doses for the whole season and is not expecting any more; a pharmacy in Amadora received two.
The paid jab is for people who are not entitled to a free one: for example, adults under 60 without chronic illnesses who have been referred for vaccination by a doctor or an employer. Pharmacies say the vaccine is in short supply across Europe. In Porto and the Alentejo, some pharmacies are putting people on a waiting list, but nobody knows when the doses will arrive. The Ministry of Health and the Directorate-General of Health (DGS) did not respond to Notícias ao Minuto's questions.
Free doses are not affected. According to the National Association of Pharmacies (ANF), there is enough vaccine for everyone entitled to a free jab on the national health service (SNS): children aged 4 and under, everyone aged 60 and over, and adults with chronic illnesses in at-risk groups. We wrote on 30 September about who can get the jab free and where.
