Persons still attempting to falsely acquire COVID-19 vaccine cards

Persons desirous of obtaining a COVID-19 vaccination card in Guyana can do so only at the expense of having their shots administered.
This was the position shared by Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony on Tuesday amid reports that people are still attempting to obtain such documents under false pretexts without being immunised.
“There are a few people who don’t want to take vaccine but they’d like to get a card, and we’re not going to allow that to happen. You must get your vaccine if you’re going to get your vaccination card. As the world is opening up now and people would like to travel, many countries are asking for you to have your vaccination card,” the Minister detailed.
Some persons have tried to falsely obtain vaccination cards by claiming that they have misplaced their original document. The Health Minister has explained that if someone has genuinely misplaced their card, there is an established process in place to get a replacement.
“We are only going to issue vaccination cards to those who have received their vaccines. If there are any persons who claim they misplaced their vaccination cards, then we will have to go through our records to see if it’s a genuine case, or if somebody is trying to fake it,” he explained.

Government is not only tasked with monitoring the COVID-19 infections and treatment, but other secondary issues which can cause a spread. According to Dr Anthony, people are utilising the established hotline numbers to make reports of various violations to the national guidelines.
“We have seen people calling into these hotlines to give us tips about people who are violating the COVID-19 measures. We have Police on staff as well, that when we get such call, the Police would be able to act immediately on such calls.”
Guyanese are mandated to wear a mask, maintain social distancing when interacting with people, and practise proper hygiene methods. With reports of positives being detected in workplaces, it was pointed out that these measures should be practised religiously in order to maintain a safe environment for employees.
“The other thing that workplaces can do to make sure that they are safe is really to get their employees vaccinated. There’re many workplaces that their employees have not been vaccinated, and that would put the employees at risk and plus it would put the public that’s coming into that particular workplace at risk as well. I think if workplaces truly want to be safe, then they must ensure that these measures that we’re talking about (are implemented).”
He further emphasised, “We know that from time to time people would pull down the mask and be talking to people. You have to wear it correctly and consistently, and maintain social distancing and so forth. With these measures, it would significantly reduce the risk of infections. Therefore, the workplace would generally be safe. Without any one of these things being in place, the workplace can be at risk.”
The Health Ministry has extended the offer to all workplaces to have a team of health personnel visit and immunise workers with both doses. Some companies have already jumped on board this initiative, but others are yet to follow suit.
“Rather than them having the inconvenience of coming to one of our sites, if they inform us, …we will be able to bring a team to the worksite and do all the vaccinations there. If it is first dose, we will come back and do the second dose as well,” he suggested.