‘The vaccine is our way out of the pandemic’ – MHRA

The Malta Hotel and Restaurants Association has welcomed the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccine with hope that the hospitality and its ancillary sectors can soon return to normality.

With bars and restaurants having faced a shut down at the start of the outbreak, the hospitality sector was badly hit by the pandemic. Through the vaccine, the association said, these sectors can return to normality and become productive again.

MHRA president Tony Zahra confirmed that he will be taking the vaccine as soon as he is invited to, both as a show of respect to others and as personal protection.

The association had previously maintained that a medical solution is needed for the recovery of the hospitality industry, with initial reports on the success of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine back in November sparking renewed hope among the hospitality industry.

“Life will be able to return to some normality once the whole population has been vaccinated and herd immunity is achieved,” Zahra said.

Last Sunday a Mater Dei nurse was first to be inoculated after Malta received a batch of 10,000 COVID-19 vaccines formulated by Pfizer and BioNTech. Mater Dei staff working in the emergency ward, ITU and IDU wards were among the first group of people tor eceive the vaccine.

Workers at Mount Carmel Hospital, Boffa Hospital, and the Good Samaritan facility are scheduled to receive the vaccine this Wednesday, followed by workers and patients at St Vincent de Paule Hospital between January 1 and 6.