To meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's stated goal of vaccinating 100,000 Israelis a day, the nation's vaccination campaign will begin operating 24/7, the Health Ministry announced Thursday.
According to Health Minister Yuli Edelstein, 210,000 Israelis above the age of 60 and healthcare workers have already received the first dose of the vaccine.
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"We will increase the pace in the next few days," he said. "I thank employees of the Health Ministry, the HMOs, the hospitals, the Magen David Adom, and the Home Front Command for their wonderful work."
The ministry has set up 108 vaccination clinics nationwide. Maccabi Healthcare Services reported that it administered 18,500 vaccinations on Thursday. By next week, the HMO hopes to reach 25,000 vaccinations a day or more.
The Heath Ministry has also given healthcare providers permission to extract up to six doses from each vial of the vaccine, instead of the previously permitted five. This will allow 800,000 more Israelis to receive their first doses.
The announcement came a day after the government declared a national lockdown starting from 5 p.m. on Sunday. Israelis will need to remain within a 1,000-meter (330 ft.) radius of their homes and will be banned from visiting other people's homes. Commerce will be shut down outside of deliveries, and public transportation will run at 50% capacity.
Health Ministry Director General Hezi Levy warned that "If the infection rate does not go down to about 1,000 new cases a day, we might extend the lockdown."
The Health Ministry reported on Friday that of the 96,590 tests taken in the past 24 hours, 3,958 had come back positive. The current infection rate stands at 4.1%.
As of Friday morning, there were 33,808 active pr symptomatic coronavirus patients in Israel, 745 of whom were quarantining in state-run hotel facilities. Some 926 patients were hospitalized. Of those, 506 were in critical condition, including 128 patients on ventilators.
A total of 3,171 Israelis have died since the outbreak of the pandemic in Israel.
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