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Nimisha Niranjan was mindlessly tapping through her Instagram stories on the night of May 18 when one of the posts grabbed her attention. The post had a WhatsApp number that people could contact to book a Covid-19 vaccine slot for people between the ages 18 and 45. Niranjan, 22, had been trying to book a jab for weeks and thought this could be her way to get vaccinated.
She sent a message immediately asking if the unknown person could book a vaccine slot for her. The person said they could. They said they were getting âearly notificationâ of slots opening up and would charge 3,000 rupees (£29.10) to provide âassistanceâ to people booking. âThis money was not even for the vaccine but just to book the slot,â says Niranjan, who works in the hospitality sector in Bangalore. âThey asked for my ID details. I thought it was a scam and denied it right away.â Apart from being uncomfortable sharing her Aadhaar (Indiaâs national ID) details with
MUMBAI
India’s deadly coronavirus second wave has underscored a stark digital divide determining who has better access to vaccines and healthcare, as surging caseloads expose shortfalls and overwhelm hospitals.
Onerous online procedures have turned vaccine access into an exclusionary, often lottery-like process in a country where about half the population lacks internet access.
When India opened up vaccines to all adults on 1 May, those in the 18 to 44 age group had to register through the Cowin platform – a centralised system – before they could book an appointment. For this, they need identity documents and access to a smartphone or computer with a strong internet connection. As states grapple with vaccine shortages, the online system has privileged a small fraction of elite, tech-literate city dwellers.
NEW DELHI: With over 96 lakh people registering on the Co-Win portal for vaccination till 10.15 pm on Thursday, the Centre said the idea behind opening up vaccination for all above 18 from May 1 even when scheduling of shots is not possible is to ensure that whichever state is ready can go ahead, instead of waiting for all states to come on board.
“The thought behind opening up registration is that the platform is up and running. So, as and when the facility of respective state governments or even private hospitals is ready, they can start vaccinating immediately. It is not necessary that all of them have to get ready at the same time. By opening registration, we have ensured that those states that are ready do not have to unnecessarily delay vaccination,” National Health Authority CEO Ram Sewak Sharma said.
Synopsis We are having a registry of healthcare providers, hospitals and laboratories, and together with them, we can develop a platform for health services delivery to achieve the objective of the national digital health mission, the official said.
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The Centre is likely to launch the digital delivery of healthcare services together with private sector stakeholders within the next 1 to 2 years with pilot programs underway in as many as six Union Territories, a top government official said. We are looking forward to implementing the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) rigorously. Digital technologies have shown us the way. We will be able to bring all stakeholders onto the platform in 1 to 2 years time, and are currently doing pilots in six Union Territories, Ram Sewak Sharma, chief executive of the National Health Authority (NHA) told ETTelecom.