Only priority groups selected for coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination will be allowed to register online via the just-launched vaccination appointment system. The priority groups now being inoculated are persons aged 75 years and older, as well as members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF). Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Dunstan Bryan,...

Chief Public Health Inspector for St. Elizabeth, Everod Lewis, says the Aedes aegypti mosquito population in the parish has been reduced to seven per cent, as vector-control measures continue in a bid to counter the spread of the dengue virus. Speaking at the recent monthly meeting of the St. Elizabeth Municipal Corporation in Black River, Mr. Lewis informed that approximately...

The Ministry of Health and Wellness is reporting that, as at 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday (March 23), at least 4,108 persons had booked appointments to receive coronavirus vaccinations utilising its online registration portal. This was disclosed by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dunstan Bryan, while addressing the weekly virtual COVID-19 Conversations press briefing on Tuesday (March 23). He also informed...

Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Jacquiline Bisasor-McKenzie, is calling on Jamaicans to adhere to the coronavirus (COVID-19) measures implemented by the Government to reduce the virus’ reproductive rate. The reproductive rate of a virus is a measure of its transmission, or the number of new infections generated by each case. Jamaica’s virus reproductive rate is now at 1.1, which means...

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director, Dr. Carissa Etienne, says more than 155 million doses of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines have, so far, been delivered to member countries. The amount includes 2.1 million doses procured through the World Health Organization (WHO) COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) Facility. Dr. Etienne was speaking during PAHO’s COVID-19 digital briefing on Tuesday (March 23). She...

The Ministry of Justice is calling for more persons, particularly men, to volunteer as mentors for the National Child Diversion Programme. Generally, mentors provide support through guidance and supervision to children in the programme, to help them curb their behaviour and address the issues that have been identified. This is a critical part of the rehabilitation aspect of the programme....

The Justice Ministry will be intensifying efforts to address the use of abusive methods by some parents and guardians in disciplining children. This is light of concerns surrounding the connection between child abuse and the deviant behaviours exhibited by young people. “I am very disturbed about the level of abuses that are being engaged in by parents and community members...