Recent efforts by the Masa Israel Journey organization and the Jewish Agency to petition the Health Ministry came to fruition on Wednesday with the launch of a vaccination program for Masa participants residing in Israel.
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Health Minister Yuli Edelstein and Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog visited Magen David Adom's vaccination center in Jerusalem, where hundreds of Jewish youths from dozens of countries, including Uzbekistan, Mexico, Argentina and Tongo, receive vaccination shots.
Some 5,000 youngsters who are expected to be vaccinated are participating in a variety of long-term programs in Israel spanning between four and 10 months. The participants intern at high-tech companies, teach English in schools in the periphery, study at universities, volunteer in the community and more. Hence, despite being foreign nationals, it was decided to vaccinate them as they are deeply embedded in the fabric of Israeli society.
According to the approved outline, the vaccination program will span 1.5 weeks and take place at five vaccination centers in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Beersheba and Eilat. The Masa participants will be able to receive services, guidance and medical advice in English, French and Russian.
"As of today, some 4.5 million people have been vaccinated in Israel," Edelstein said on Wednesday. "I'm happy to be here today with the chairman of the Jewish Agency and the wonderful Masa participants. This is a very important vaccination operation… It's good we were able to remove all the bureaucratic obstacles that were in our way."
Herzog thanked the Health Ministry and MDA for coming together to launch the vaccination program for the Masa participants.
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