“We have 70% of the Azorean population fully vaccinated. At the end of yesterday [Wednesday] 70.6% of the Azoreans were fully vaccinated, reaching the Regional Government's goal of having this level of vaccination during the month of August," said the head of the Health portfolio in the Azores.

The government official spoke, in statements to journalists, during a visit to the vaccination centre in Angra do Heroísmo, on Terceira Island.

Six of the nine islands of the Azores (Corvo, Faial, Pico, São Jorge, Graciosa and Santa Maria) had already reached the target of 70%, a value assumed by the Azorean government to achieve group immunity and lift restrictive measures to control the pandemic of Covid-19.

As for the remaining three, the island of Flores recently reached 70% and Terceira and São Miguel (the most populous) should do so soon, according to Clélio Meneses.

“In São Miguel, today we reached 70%, on Terceira Island, today or tomorrow [Friday], we also reached 70% of the vaccinated population, which means that vaccination is at a high rate and guarantee the protection of the population”, he referred.

Asked about the vaccination target defined by the executive, Clélio Meneses said that “what is being assumed as an approximate number of a more precise guarantee of protection is around 80 to 85%”, a number already reached in some islands.

“We have two islands – Corvo and Santa Maria – already with 80% or more of the population with complete vaccination, we have another three islands – Graciosa, São Jorge and Pico – practically also with close to 80% of the population fully vaccinated”, he revealed.

The government official estimates that this value will be reached, at the regional level, by October and that the existing vaccination centres in São Miguel and Terceira may be deactivated during the month of September.