Speaking to Lusa, the coordinator of the Technical Commission on Vaccination Against Covid-19, Válter Fonseca, explained that “recent studies have shown that vaccines are safe during pregnancy and capable of inducing the production of protective antibodies for pregnant women”.

The recommendation is for vaccination to be carried out after 21 weeks of pregnancy and, preferably, in health centres, although vaccination is not prohibited in any location where vaccines are available.

"It should preferably take place in the context of primary health care, where health professionals have had experience in vaccinating pregnant women for many years," explained Válter Fonseca.

The logistics on how pregnant women should apply is still being adjusted and will be announced in the coming days.

Válter Fonseca recalled that pregnancy has been associated with an increased risk of severe Covid-19 and underlined that the vaccines used in Portugal “are inactivated, like many that have been used safely for years within the scope of the National Vaccination Program”.

The standard states that vaccination must respect a minimum interval of 14 days in relation to the administration of other vaccines, such as the pertussis vaccine and the flu vaccine, and that breastfeeding is not a contraindication for vaccination against Covid-19.

Speaking to Lusa, the coordinator of the Technical Commission on Vaccination against Covid-19 stressed that “vaccines against covid-19 are safe and effective”, but recalled that “it has not yet been fully demonstrated that they can prevent the transmission of the virus.”

“Hence the importance, at this stage, of continuing to maintain adequate protection measures, such as social distancing, the use of masks and hand hygiene,” he added.