The general director of Health, Miguel Asqueta, said that the decision to vaccinate foreigners in Uruguay is subject to “political decisions, not technical”.
Asqueta was consulted by the announcement made by the Minister of Tourism, Tabaré Viera, with respect to the enabling of this measure, which remains have the approval of the Ministry of Public Health.
At a press conference reported by 970 Noticias (Universal radio), Asqueta commented that these issues “are being worked on at the highest political level and among ministers.” “The good thing is that to make those decisions we will not have to issue, from the general direction of Health, or from the National Vaccination Advisory Commission, technical determinations,” he explained.
“They will be political decisions in terms of taking into account some fundamental things, preserving the sanitary status of Uruguay, that Uruguayans have all the vaccine available for when they put their arm, and that is not in doubt, that the country’s vaccine reserves for next year, which are already insured, be enough, and solidarity, “he added.
In addition, the Health Director pointed out: “If the World Health Organization (WHO) itself asks ‘vaccinate, vaccinate, vaccinate’ and that everyone have access, if all Uruguayans have access to the vaccine, why not someone who goes to be in our territory also have it ”. “These are the determinations that the minister and the undersecretary will take together with the other ministers and the president,” he reiterated.
Asqueta highlighted that in Uruguay there is a “very low community transmission” and currently there is “the emergence of some outbreaks, especially when it is identified that there are unvaccinated people.”
“Everyone is doing their work, sociocultural, artistic, educational and other activities, as almost no country in the world could do,” he said.
In that sense, he opined that the country is “headed for a transition from an epidemic, a pandemic, with which it will be necessary to coexist as with so many endemics there are of other respiratory viruses and pathologies in the world.”
