Nearly two-thirds of nursing home residents vaccinated

The Magen David Adom emergency service says it has vaccinated 63% of residents of nursing homes and elder care facilities. Overall, the organization says, it has administered the first dose of the immunization to 100,000 such residents.

In a statement, MDA notes that one-third of Israel’s coronavirus deaths have been residents of such facilities.

“The elderly and the physically disabled are the people most at risk for getting critically ill or dying from COVID,” says Dr. Shafir Botner, director of paramedic training for Magen David Adom and acting field director of MDA’s COVID testing and vaccination program. “So it’s crucially important that inoculating these populations be made a priority.”